Memories Never Fade
by DarkestCornerOfMyMind
Summary: AUTHOR'S NOTICE: THIS STORY IS PUT ON HIATUS.
1. Izawa Ran

OMG, I hate exams. Luckily this is a chapter I managed to type in my spare time.

Disclaimer: I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. If I had, the world wouldn't fall apart if they let the TYLs out of that machine! (I wanna see TYL Tsuna! DX)

Okay, here's a sum of it.

**Title:**_ Memories Never Fade  
_**Rating:** _T, may be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_ Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_ Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!!  
_**Total Number of OCs: **_Four_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_ Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _In the Eden perions,_ _Izawa Ran is the daughter of Izawa Yuu, a general who is planning betrayal against the the Shogun, and Izawa Ryuuka, who hates her daughter but loves her husband to the point of insanity. Ran is a heroine of my story, as you will see, and the first few chapters will be her story, then Hibari's story, and then things will really take off from there this summer XDD!! _

That's pretty much the gist of it. Let's go!

_

* * *

_

"Otou-san!" cried Ran happily. "Otou-san!"

A man, dressed nobleman's clothes paused on his way to work and glanced down at his daughter. "Yes? Ran."

It was in the midst of the Edo period. Young Izawa Ran was the daughter of one of the Shogun's greatest generals, Izawa Yuu. Ran admired her father greatly, and looked up to him as a God.

"Otou-san! Train me!" Ran demanded. Her father laughed that eerie laugh of his.

"Kufufu, my cute little Ran, certainly. But after I have done my duties to the Shogun. There is a war going on after all."

Ran pouted unhappily. "No fair! Shogun-sama gets everything! And he's not even a good leader anyway!"

Her father laughed again. "Kufufu, that's no good, little Ran. I don't like him either, but as long as I pretend to be loyal, I can get you anything you wish. I am his favorite soldier after all. Remember this: work for the powerful and you can get what you want. Eventually overthrow him and you will get even more. Understand? I will be the Shogun one day, then I can spend all my time with you. Okay?"

Ran nodded, wide-eyed. Her father patted her on the head. "Good girl. Now go play."

The man that would one day be known as Rokudo Mukuro watched his daughter scamper off, a soft, loving smile on his face.

"Really, she is the best child I've ever had so far," he murmured. "I can't say the same for my current wife."

* * *

"Say that again!"

The boy on the ground stood up, wiped away his tears, and spat at Ran's feet. "I said that your father's gonna get beheaded one day! Everyone knows that he'll betray the Shogun!"

"He's not ever going to fall to that filty Shogun!" Ran said shrilly. Several adults around cast her scandilized looks. "Otou-san's invincible!"

"Yah! Stupid girl!"

Ran sent another blow to his face. The boy fell to the ground and did not get up. The adults rushed over and hovered over him.

"Is he alive?!"

"Yes! He's fine! Out cold though…"

"You demon's child!" the boy's mother screamed at Ran. "How dare you hurt my son!"

"Yah! You old Baba!" Ran shrieked back. "Hope that you die from that arthritis!"

Ran ran off through the streets of Eden, running for home. She scowled angrily. How dare they think that her father could be defeated! How dare they! Ran was furious at the very thought. She paused by the marketplace. She should probably buy some food for home.

She saw a large hunk of pork by the butchers. Her father's favorite, if grilled and then served with miso and rice. It was a bit expensive, but…

* * *

Humming happily as she entered her house, she slid the door open and called, "I'm home!"

Her mother came out, a smile, then a scowl on her face. "Oh, it's just you," her mother said, eyeing the pork. "What is that?"

"Pork!" Ran said cheerily. "Otou-san will like it!"

Ran headed towards the kitchen, but then was stopped by her mother, Izawa Ryuuka, who snatched the meat away.

"I'LL cook it for your father. He prefers my cooking anyway," she sniffed and strut away. Ran stuck a tongue out at her from behind. That old fat goose!

Ran skipped back to the doorway and sat down, waiting patiently.

Her father would come back tonight, he had said.

She would wait.

* * *

Far away, on a battle field, Izawa Yuu stared up at the sky, a slight smirk on his face. His middle was pierced by a spear, the wound having long ago run out of blood to bleed.

"Kufufu, so that's how it was…" Izawa muttered. "I never expected the great Shogun to order my comrades to turn against me."

He coughed sharply, a spew of blood again flowing over his chin. "Comrades…" his smile turned bitter. "I should never trust them."

As his spirit slowly faded away, three words slowly left his lips.

"Forgive me… Ran."

And he moved no more.

* * *

Ran was sitting in front of the door.

Her father hadn't come home. But all the other soldiers had.

They had apologized, swearing that her father had been cut down by three men who had came at him all at once.

But she could see it. Their lies and deceit. They had killed him.

She knew it would happen.

But she had denied it.

Her mother was in the back, drowning herself in sake and misery. Ran couldn't blame her.

Even in the time of a loved one's death, the hate still remained.

Ran was to learn this.

Tomorrow.

* * *

"Okaa-san," whispered Ran, padding silently on the tatami floor to where her mother slept. "Okaa-san."

Her mother gave a half snore, half moan, and flipped on her side, clinging a sake bottle to her side.

If her father had been alive, Ran might have laughed.

But he wasn't alive.

He was gone.

'Ran' would never laugh again.

* * *

Ran came home later that day. She had sold several of her personal belongings to make money. She was going to have to be thrifty from now on.

She went in to her room to find her mother, ripping her futon to shreds.

"Okaa-san?" cried Ran. If her father had been alive, she would have literally kicked her mother out of her room.

But sadness had devitalized her to the point of not eating.

Her mother, Ryuuka, turned around, her eyes lit with fury and insanity.

"It's your fault!" screamed Ryuuka. "It's all your fault he didn't love me!"

Ran backed away, terrified. Her mother brandished a blade wildly, cutting off some of her own hair in the process.

"If you die," Ryuuka whispered. "That's right! If you die, he'll love me again…"

"Okaa-san, no!" Ran pleaded. She felt pathetic and hopeless. Scared.

There was a flash of silver, two twin screams, a bright explosion of red…

And then everything went black.

* * *

King Genma, lord of all spirits, sighed and stood up.

His favorite human had died.

It was a shame, he mused, that such a young girl had to die before her full potential could blossom.

The poor, poor girl, who had done nothing wrong.

But in the eyes of others, she had.

So where should she go?

* * *

OMG, I am sooo going to enjoy this! Reviews, please!


	2. Welcome to Death! Explanation of Flames

YAAAAAH!!!! SCHOOL'S OUT!!!!!!

And now I'll have more time to work on this!!!!

Disclaimer: I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. If I had, the world wouldn't fall apart if they let the TYLs out of that machine! (I wanna see TYL Tsuna! DX)

**Title:**_ Memories Never Fade  
_**Chapter:**_ Welcome to Death! Explanation of Flames_  
**Rating:** _T, may be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_ Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_ Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!!  
_**Total Number of OCs: **_Four_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_ Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _Now that Ran has died, Genma has taken her in as a daughter. But there's more to that than it seems...?!

* * *

_

A little girl was in a line of dead people. The right side of her chest was covered with blood. Her eyes, like all the others in the line, were empty and devoid of emotion or memories.

_Who am I…?_ she wondered hazily. _Where is this place…?_

She stood before the judges table.

There was a scale. A giant scale.

On one side there was a white lily, the flower of purity.

On the other was a black rose, the flower of death and evil.

In front, there was a small box, with a hole in the center. Every time a spirit was called up, they were instructed to stick their hand in the box. Colors would shoot out, colors that looked like flames. There were yellow, indigo, blue, green, red, and violet. Once, there was orange. The scales would tip one way or the other.

If it tipped in the direction of the lily, a white figure radiating golden light would lead that spirit to the door on the left.

If it tipped in the direction of the rose, a black figure with nothing but malice would throw the spirit in to the door on the left.

If nothing happened, then they would be lead by both figures to a door behind the judge.

The judge himself was a half devil and half angel. One side was red with black wings. The other was white with gold wings.

"Next," came the judge's voice.

It was the girl's turn.

Like the others before her, she stuck her hand in the box.

Nothing happened. No flames, no change in the scale, nothing.

The judge frowned and tapped the box. Both figures stepped up to take her to the middle door.

Then the box exploded in to black flames.

There was screaming and shrieking. The girl's head was in a blur. What was going on?

_CLANG!_ The scales split in half and both sides fell down at the same time. More screams.

It was pure chaos.

Among the ringing in her ears, the girl could hear someone yell, "Get Lord Genma!"

Genma?

Who was that?

* * *

Genma stood in front of the girl, sizing her up. She was a small figure, even smaller when next to him.

He tilted her head up. Gently.

"Ran."

The girl's head spun.

"Ran."

The girl felt dizzy. Who was Ran?

"Ran," Genma cupped her face between his hands. "Do you remember?"

The girl didn't.

"Remember," Genma said gently. "Your father."

_My father?_ the girl thought. _My father…_

"Ran."

The girl screamed and clutched her hair. Her head was pounding.

_It hurts!_

_It hurts so much!_

_OTOU-SAN!_

The girl's head snapped up.

"Do you remember?" Genma asked gently.

Izawa Ran nodded. She looked sick.

"Good," Genma took her hand. "Come with me."

She walked away with him, feeling a little better.

* * *

He did not take her to any of the three doors. Instead, he led her to a strange device that he called an 'elevator.' It glided upwards, between floors, like magic.

The 'elevator' stopped. Genma and Ran stepped out.

The room was large, spacious, and beautiful, shaped like a pentagon. Three of the five walls were windows two right next to her and to the left of the 'elevator'. Out one window, there was Hell. Out another window, there was Heaven.

The last window was the biggest, and to the right of the 'elevator.' It showed Ran's old hometown. Her old house wasn't there anymore. It had been replaced. The whole town had been replaced with newer, cleaner buildings.

"Time is different here," Genma said gently. Ran liked his voice, it reminded her of her father's. "Just a few seconds over here is many hours over there. Sometimes it slows down and sometimes it speeds up. It all depends on my will."

Ran pressed her fingers against the window. It was cool beneath her touch.

"Slow it down," she whispered, her breath fogging the glass.

Genma nodded. All at once, the people moving through the town slowed. They looked almost like they weren't moving at all.

"Do you want me to speed it up?"

Ran shook her head. She was fascinated by the people. She sat in front of the window and watched.

"Ran."

Ran glanced back at him. "Yes? Genma-san."

"Will you be my daughter?"

Ran stared at him for a moment, before shrugging and turning away. "It doesn't matter to me. But what will I get from it?"

"A home, things to eat, an education about how the world will be, training…" Genma trailed off.

Ran turned around again. "What sort of training?"

"Training to get you in to this tournament," Genma said, holding a piece of paper up.

It was a poster for something called Heru Akuma Taikai. Those who entered would fight to the death (_Can we still die?_ Ran wondered) and the winner would get…

… The chance to go back to life.

Ran's eyes glimmered slightly before abruptly facing the window once more. "Fine."

"You can watch that later, little one," Genma said gently, picking her up and taking her to a desk by one of the normal walls in the room. "If you want to survive, you have to learn about the flames."

Ran reluctantly tore her sight from the human realm and sat down at the desk. "What about the flames?"

* * *

**_Please note that you can skip this part. It'll come it later in the story anyway, so..._**

"There are supposedly seven types of flames," Genma began, already getting in to teaching mode, "and each have their own colors and named after a weather condition. They are Sky, Storm, Rain, Lightning, Sun, Mist, and Cloud. Also, each one has their own special attribute."

"Like what?"

"The Sky Flame is orange in color and has the attribute of Harmony."

"Why?"

"Because the Sky oversees everything, binding all the elements to itself. He understands and accepts all of them," Genma paused. "That's why the Sky Flame is found in the world's greatest leaders. It is very rare."

"Do you have the Sky Flame too?" Ran tilted her head.

"Yes."

"Show me?"

Genma held out his hand. A small, orange flame ignited and glowed. Ran's eyes lit up in fasicnation. It was a beautiful thing.

"What are the colors for the others?"

"Let's see… Storm is Red, Rain is Blue, Lightning is Green, Mist is Indigo, Sun is Yellow, and Cloud is Violet."

Ran frowned. Genma paused.

"Something wrong?"

"But my flames… they were black, weren't they?"

Genma looked at her, took a deep breath, and sighed.

"There are actually four more flame types added on to the original seven. But they are rare. Very rare. In fact, there has only been three of each in the entire history of these worlds."

"What are they?"

"Wind, Stars and Moon, Snow, and…" Genma paused again. "Your flames, the Flame of Night."

"Night…" murmured Ran. "What is the attribute?"

"There is none that we know of, however… the Flames of Night are terrifying. It is said that you can only get that flame if your Mist and Sky flames are strong."

Ran tilted her head. "So I have both Sky and Mist too?"

"Everyone already has a Sky flame."

"Huh?"

Genma was getting tired of so many questions, but it wasn't Ran's fault that she didn't know. "Everyone's flame is a Sky flame at first, but after they grow older, their personality takes shape and their flames convert in to a different one. A little of the original flame is still there, but they can't use it. That's why they are so rare. A person with Sky flames must be a rather pure individual that accepts everything, even if he outwardly doesn't seem to."

"Hmm…" Ran rolled a pencil (or what seemed to be a pencil) in between her hands. "So that's how it works…"

Genma nodded, wondering if he should explain anything else.

"I'll figure it out on my own," Ran suddenly said.

"Figure out what?"

"I'll figure out the flame stuff on my own. And I'll oversee my own training. I won't need any help."

Genma raised his eyebrows in this sudden change of subject. "But…"

"I said it's fine," Ran said calmly, before standing up and walking over to the Hell's window. "Now how do I get over there?"

"WHAT?!" Genma gasped (_That's a bit dramatic,_ thought Ran). "You can't go over there! It's… well, Hell!"

"… So?"

"You just don't go there! Even I don't go there! Especially not now!"

"… Why?"

"Well…" Genma suddenly looked really embarassed. "There's a demon…"

"… That's the most pathetic excuse I've ever heard. Of course there are demons in hell."

"No no no," Genma shook his head. "This demon is special. He only appears once his human half dies, and then is reborn again in the human world."

"… And what's so terrifying about that?"

"Every time you die, and then are reborn, you become stronger. If reincarnated, then it takes a while because you need to build up your skills again from scratch, but besides that, they become very powerful in both worlds."

Ran looked interested. "So what if I come back to life through that tournament?"

"Then you add on to the abilities that you already have. You're pretty strong right now, but if you go back to life, you'll be incredibly powerful."

Ran's eyes were glowing with an odd light. "I see…" her lips curled in to a smirk.

"Right, well, whatever, old man. I'm going to Hell now. Cya!"

"WAIT!!" shouted Genma. It was too late. With unbelievable speed, Ran had already sprinted to the elevator and was heading back down to the… er, lobby I guess.

Genma sighed and collapsed in his chair. "Maybe taking her in wasn't such a great idea…" he muttered.

"But…" he glanced out the hell window. "It was THAT demon's request, so I have no choice…"

* * *

Meanwhile, that particular demon smirked lazily as he watched Ran run through the entrance to Hell.

"Kufufu…"

* * *

GAH!!! This chapter was horrible, but I did need to explain some stuff in here. Thanks for reading!

* * *


	3. Winner! Time To Be Reborn!

This chapter is kind of short (and suckish), but next chapter is about her first encounter with our favorite skylark. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. If I had, the world wouldn't fall apart if they let the TYLs out of that machine! (I wanna see TYL Tsuna! DX)

**Title:**_ Memories Never Fade  
_**Chapter:**_ Welcome to Death! Explanation of Flames_  
**Rating:** _T, may be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_ Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_ Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!!  
_**Total Number of OCs: **_Four_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_ Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _It's time for the tournament! And the winner is...? (obvious...)_

_

* * *

_

"Hmm…" Ran twirled the staff she used as her weapon during the battle between her fingers. "Really, these guys…"

She glanced down at the dead pile of opponents that she was sitting on. "Are just far too weak."

Genma watched silently. He was awed by Ran's progress. She had grown powerful so quickly, only one month. She was definitely that demon's daughter.

But that wasn't the terrifying part. The most scary thing was that she showed complete indifference to killing. After her very first kill that was an accident, she had just stared at the body, kicked it, shrugged, and walked away after flinging the body in to a pit of fire. After asking how she felt, she had just replied with, "So I killed him. And?"

Genma shook his head. That girl was incredible.

The tournament would come up soon.

She was ready.

* * *

The crowd jeered when she first stood up in the ring. They laughed when her opponent mockingly danced around her. They screamed when the severed head of her opponent flew in to the audience. They gasped at the sight of her tearing the opponent's body to shreads without a hint of mercy, hesistance, or regret. The started to cheer for her as she turned the whole tournament in to a brutal, one-sided massacre.

The only reason they cheered was because they thought if they didn't they'd end up like the bloody pieces around them.

Soon enough, there was no one more to fight. Others had resigned and were allowed to leave. More had tried to run away, but they were caught by the unforgiving crowd and flung in to the ring to meet their fate.

Ran did not care.

She had wanted to go back to life and teach that old woman of hers a lesson.

Perhaps that was the only reason? She didn't know.

There was something nagging her in the pit of her stomach. Something that told her that she HAD to go back. To start something. A revolution? A new calamity?

She still didn't know.

That's why she was going to find out.

* * *

"AND THE WINNER IS IZAWA RAN!!!" roared the announcer. The audience went crazy. For her. For Ran.

Ran's face was impassive. The announcer came up to her and handed her a small bottle. "Drink this," he instructed her softly. "It will return you to the Human World.

Ran uncorked it and peered at the liquid inside. It was a sort of clear, light green color, that seemed to swirl before her eyes.

She recorked it and turned away. "Later."

* * *

Relaxing in Genma's study, she stared at the bottle that she held idly between her fingers.

Genma entered to see her sprawled on the couch. "What's wrong?"

Ran sat up. "Oh, hi, Genma-chan. I was just wondering… is my father anywhere down here?"

Genma gulped. "Uh, perhaps?"

"Really? Because I scanned all of Heaven already and I can't find him anywhere."

That's because he's in Hell! Genma thought nervously. "Why do you want him?"

"I want him to drink this," Ran tossed the bottle from hand to hand.

"WHAT?! Uh, he can't!"

"Why?"

"Because… because it only works for the person who won it!" Genma came up with a brilliant answer.

"Oh," Ran studied the liquid again. "Are you sure? I could just give him a sip and…"

"No!" Genma said quickly. "It'll just do an opposite and make him disappear completely!"

Ran glanced at him. "You seem antsy."

_And you seem too mature for a six year old._ "Well… it be best if you drink it soon. It'll lose it's power by the next half-moon. That's in three days now."

Ran sighed. "Yes yes yes."

Genma left the room, relieved. Ran flopped back in to the cushions.

_Why do I have this feeling in my stomach?_

_Why… does it bother me so much?_

_I have to go back, but I don't know why._

_To die and be reborn again…_

_… That's just crazy._

She uncorked the bottle and downed the whole thing.

* * *

When she next woke up, she was sitting in a field of flowers…

"What the fucking hell…?"

Ran stood up and brushed herself off. "God, this is exasperating. Where the heck am I?"

She glanced down at herself. She had the same clothes on as when she died.

"Well this ain't good," she murmured to herself. "I won't blend in."

Time to find a town. For information, new clothes…

_GROWWWL._

… And food. She was going to need that from now on.

Maybe being dead was easier.

* * *

Genma walked back in to the study, blinking as he saw the empty bottle and vacant couch.

"So she drank it…" he muttered, leaning back. He sighed happily and stretched. "Now I can get some peace…"

The elevator door opened. "Hey, Genma-chan."

Genma fell out of his seat. "What the!?"

It was Ran! But… a little older…?

He jabbed a finger at her. "What are you doing back here! It's only been a few seconds!"

Ran blinked at him. "It's been one year in the Human World already. I'm seven now."

"But why are you dead again?!"

"I committed suicide. I'll enter the tournament again and get stronger. I heard that there are more, and better opponents this time around. I'll go back to life, live for a year, and die again, and then the whole cycle will repeat. Then when I get super strong, I'll take over the world, or some shit like that," Ran shrugged.

Genma groaned and buried his face in his hands. "So much for a peaceful life…"

"I can hear you, you bastard."

… Well, this was going to go on for a while.

* * *

Well now, next is the Hibari Kyouya arc!


	4. Skylark Arc I: Meeting

Here we introduce Hibari! Cute little Hibari who looks moe as a kid *squeals*

(I don't know if he actually did, but a guy that cute has got to have looked even cuter as a kid. And besides, he kind of looks like a girl to me anyways. You should see some doujinshis.)

**Title:**_ Memories Never Fade  
_**Chapter:**_ Welcome to Death! Explanation of Flames_  
**Rating:** _T, may be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_ Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_ Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!!  
_**Total Number of OCs: **_Four_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_ Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _Ran meets our favorite skylark, who isn't a skylark at the time. Meet Miyagi Kyouya!_

_

* * *

_

"See you tomorrow!"

Izawa Ran, now known as Chi Amaya, waved good-bye to her friends from class and skipped down the snowy street on her own. She stuck out her tongue thoughtfully and caught several snowflakes on the tip.

"Snow…" she murmured, staring up at the grey-blue sky. "No matter how many centuries pass by, snow stays the same."

Ran, now Amaya, was currently twelve years old and a freshman in middle school. She had decided to get a proper human education, and was planning to stay alive for a couple more years.

_Besides, I've died and have been reborn for about five times now. I'm probably the strongest on this planet._

Ran grinned at this thought and twirled on her heels, making circles in the snow. Her long, dark brown hair lightly brushed her face.

Then she nearly tripped over something.

Ran stumbled slightly, cursing the long skirt, and looked down to see a pile of black cloth.

Now curious, Ran poked it.

It wiggled.

_IT MOVED!!! _Ran jumped backwards.

The pile sat up. It was a small child dressed in all black winter clothing. Ran frowned and moved away the scarf that was covering the child's face. She paused and blinked.

A small, beautiful little girl stared back at her. She was sweet and mild looking, with lips as red as blood… no, wait, that really was blood! What the heck!?

The girl coughed violently and more blood splattered on the the snow, forming roses on white. Ran blinked and stared absently.

_Huh, is she going to die?_ Ran pondered. She shrugged. She didn't care. She didn't even know this girl. Ran stood up, brushed her skirt, and turned to walk away. She felt a slight tug on her skirt and glanced back.

Big mistake! Ran, being a sucker for cute things, was hit with a full blast of teary puppy eyes that were practically screaming: _"I'm cute and adorable, so are you really going to leave pretty little me here to die? RESCUE ME, DAMMIT!!!"_

Ran sighed. "Geez, okay okay."

She pulled a light purple hankerchief out of her pocket and pressed it against the girl's mouth, making sure not to choke off her air. Then Ran bent over and swept the little girl up in to her arms, throwing her over her shoulder.

"God, you're light. Do you eat at all?" she snorted. The little girl made muffled noises against the cloth, but then started coughing up more blood.

"Don't talk! Good thing that's there, it'd be horrible if you stained my clothes…"

The little girl made a rather outraged sound at Ran's priorities and started to kick around.

"Hey! Don't make me drop you!"

The girl stopped and glared at her.

"Sheesh, and I thought you were cute. You're really spirited."

The girl was probably scowling.

"Looks like you're done coughing. Here," Ran reached over and removed the gag. Just as she was pulling her hand away, the girl nipped at her fingers.

"Ouch! You little…" Ran spanked her lightly on the bottom. The girl squawked indignantly.

"Now let's see… There's a vet's place around here… better than nothing… found it!"

Ran knocked at the door. A kind looking man answered.

"May I help you?"

"Yeah, I've got this vicious little… OWW!! She bit me again!" Ran yelped, rubbing a spot on her neck that was now bleeding.

"Don't touch me!" came back the raspy voice for the first time. The girl's voice was dry, probably dehydrated.

The vet stared at the girl. "Miyagi-kun?"

"Huh? 'kun?'"

* * *

Ran sipped her tea and glanced over at the child she had rescued. Now all that the winter clothing was removed, and she could see the child clearly for the first time.

It was shocking enough to learn that the girl, was in fact, a boy. He certaintly didn't look like one. He seemed to be a porcelin doll. Dark, ebony hair that didn't reflect any light, light ivory skin that didn't seem to go out much, and narrow, but large grayish-blue eyes. The boy was small and rather slight, with a thin build. Yet she could that he practiced some sort of martial art, with the way that he carried himself. Elegantly and with catlike grace.

_He really is a cutie after all…_

"Here's some tea," the vet, whose name was Arakaki. "Good thing you found Miyagi-kun. He's rather fragile and stubborn."

"What's his full name?"

"Ah, it's Miyagi Kyouya. What would your name be?"

"Oh, I am Chi Amaya."

"Chi Amaya…?" Arakaki frowned. "That's a rather unusual combination… Not to offend you or anything, but doesn't that mean 'Bloody Night Rain'?"

Ran smirked in to her tea. "Really? I never bothered with the meanings of names, so I never noticed."

_Although since I'm the one who made that name for myself, I deem it appropriate._

"I see. Miyagi-kun, you should thank her."

Miyagi Kyouya turned his eyes down and muttered an unhappy, "Arigatou."

_Wow, he has some pretty long lashes…_

"He's not very sociable, is he?"

"Not really," Arakaki laughed. "But he's really good with animals. Especially birds. Speaking of which…"

He turned back to Kyouya. "Miyagi-kun, that woman's bird won't eat again."

"Oh!" Kyouya's eyes suddenly lit up and he dashed to the back. "I'll go!"

"And suddenly he's so cute and energetic…" Ran sweat-dropped.

"I told you. He likes animals. He actually works here part time as my assistant. The animals here all love him. You can go take a look if you want. My specialty are birds, so I have a whole room for them. It's in the back, third door to the right."

Ran crept behind to the back and peeked around the open door cautiously, not sure WHY she was being cautious. There was something about Kyou-chan (as she now affectionately called him) that put her on her guard. And that was pretty impressive considering that Kyouya was so young; only about nine years old or so, in contrast to her approximate 350+ years or so (Eden period ran from 1603-1868, and Ran was born around 1624, and I don't know the current year in Reborn! So, I'll just say that it's five years from 2009, 2004, so…).

Her eyes widened at the sight before her. Kyouya had unleashed all the birds from their cages and was scattering bread crumbs and bird seed everywhere. The birds flew all around him. Landing on his shoulders, nesting in his hair, using him as their perch. Several were pecking lightly at his shirt, begging for more food. A large, brightly colored parrot was eating happily from his hands, chirping random phrases as he stroked it. There was a gentle, serene smile on his face, making him even more (Cute? Feminine?) handsome than before. Ran's breath hitched.

Kyouya suddenly paused and whipped his head around, scattering the birds. "Who's there?"

Ran raised her eyebrows. Well well, it seemed that cute Kyou-chan was quite sensitive to his surroundings. He must be, or he wouldn't be so good with his little feathery friends.

"It's just me," Ran stepped out.

"Oh, Chi Amaya."

"You could just call me Amaya," she crouched next to him. "Or Ama-neesama!"

"In your dreams, hag!"

"Who you callin' hag?! I'm only twelve!"

_Add on a couple hundred anyway. I'm still a kid at heart!_

"Miyagi-kun," Arakaki poked his head around the door. "I'm closing up. You should go now."

Kyouya stopped stroking the parrot, then slowly stood up. He smiled at Arakaki. "Thank you for helping me."

Ran was bewildered by this sudden change. Suddenly the foul-mouthed kid turned all sickly sweet. _Ugggh_, Ran shuddered. She hated those types.

… And isn't she one of those types?!

* * *

The moment Kyouya and Ran were outside, and when Arakaki shut that door, Kyouya bolted.

And, of course, Ran caught him. Well, pounced on him.

"And where do you think you're going?"

"G-Get off!" Kyouya flailed. "You're heavy!"

"Arakaki-san gave me your address, so I know that your house isn't that way," she rolled off and lifted him up with one hand by the back of his shirt so that they were eye level. _God, he really is a tiny kid…_

"I'm never going back!" Kyouya shrieked. "Never! I hate it there! They'll just lock me up again anywa - "

Kyouya suddenly stopped.

And then he started coughing violently.

"Oh man, not again," Ran held him back a little. "You're going to get blood on my clothes!"

She promptly dropped him. Kyouya landed with a thump and started to cough harder, since he was trying to talk at the same time.

"You - *hack* -damn - *choke* bitch!" he lasped back in to a fit. Ran rolled her eyes.

"I WAS thinking about helping you, but I guess not now," she turned around and made as if to walk away before she felt a tug on her skirt, the same as before.

"Help… me… please…" Kyouya spat out the words bitterly before passing out.

"Stupid kid…" Ran sighed. She picked him up, more gently this time, and walked towards the large mansion down the opposite side of the street. "Of course I'm not going to leave you here. I still can't resist that cute face of yours…"

* * *

All I know is that "Chi" means blood, and "Amaya" means night rain. I don't think Chi is supposed to be a last name, but what the heck, they're both girl names. And I really like the combo.

For those of you who are still confused, you can send me emails. I can't explain everything without giving a spoiler.

Thanks for reading! Reviews plz!


	5. Skylark Arc II: The Miyagi Family

Fon and a couple more OCs are here (but they won't be for long).

Gah, I just realized that I never changed the chapter part below since chapter 2. I'll fix that later... (is lazy)

**Title:**_ Memories Never Fade  
_**Chapter:**_ The Miyagi Family_  
**Rating:** _T, may be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_ Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_ Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_Four_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_ Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _Kyouya's family is a lot stranger than you expect, but it turns out that Ran can be even stranger..._

_

* * *

_

Ran hesitantly knocked on the door. She was hesitant because though this huge house was quite beautiful, with an old fashioned Japanese style, it was rather intimidating. And other than that, it was exactly where her original house used to be.

_And that's a scary coincidence._

An old woman opened the door and looked down at her. "Yes? I'm sorry, we're experiencing some family problems now, so we're not buying anything…"

"Mind buying this brat?" Ran held the unconcious Kyouya up.

"Eh? Ah… YOUNG MASTER?!" gasped the old lady. "Oh thank goodness! I thought you were kidnapped!"

She snatched Kyouya out of Ran's grip and looked at him worriedly. "Young Master!"

"Relax," Ran waved her hand dismissively. "He was having a pretty bad coughing fit earlier, so he fainted."

"Oh, thank goodness, nothing worse than that happened?"

"Well… there was a good deal of blood."

The old woman gasped again. "I'm sorry! Please come in! Excuse me!" she hurriedly said and rushed away, leaving Ran at the doorstep.

"… What the…"

A few minutes later, Ran was sitting next to Kyouya's futon, where he was sleeping, his breathing light and easy. Ran laid down next to him, falling asleep herself…

* * *

"UWAWAWAAAAAH!!!" the yell jerked Ran awake. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING IN MY ROOM?!"

"Mornin', Kyou-chan," Ran muttered tiredly. "Finally awake?"

"WHY ARE YOU HERE!?!" Kyouya glared angrily at her.

"Why are you so mad? I brought you back here?"

"I don't want to be here!"

"Why?"

"Because-"

"HEY!!"

Kyouya and Ran both turned to the doorway, where a (beautiful?)young man was standing, wearing traditional Chinese clothing. He had long black hair tied back in a braid and the same eye color as Kyouya.

"Kyouya! You're awake!" the man looked relieved and strode towards the futon. "Thank goodness, I was worried about you! Don't run off like that!"

Kyouya scowled at him. The young man turned to Ran with a smile. "Thank you for bringing my little brother back. My name is Miyagi Fon."

"Fon?" Ran stood up and shook his offered hand. "Isn't that a Chinese name?"

"Ah, yes, our father, Miyagi Deming(1), is Chinese."

"Oh… he's not a police officer by any chance, is he?"

"How'd you know?"

"Just a guess…"

"Well, you're welcome here anytime. I need to leave," he bent and gently hugged his little brother. "I'm going on a trip. See you later, Kyouya."

Kyouya was unresponsive, averting his eyes. Fon just smiled slightly and left the room without another word.

Ran watched him go. "Wow, your brother is cute."

Kyouya glared at her.

"Aren't you going to miss him? You could have at least hugged him back."

Kyouya stared at his bed sheets. "I hate him."

"Why?" Ran sat down on the edge of the bed.

Kyouya looked moodily out the window. "He gets to go wherever he wants. And I'm stuck here."

"You go to Arakaki-san's clinic…"

"I'm only allowed to go out for a restricted period of time," Kyouya spat out. "I have to have a curfew and always come here until I can go out again, but Fon can go anywhere he wants and nobody bothers if he comes back in an hour or a year! I hate having my decisions and actions be controlled by other people! I'm always trapped here!"

Kyouya looked a little exhausted by his outburst, his voice lowering to a small whisper. "Fon's so lucky. At least he's healthy. I'm stuck with Good pasture's syndrome."

"Ouch," Ran said sympathetically, reaching out and stroking the younger boy's cheek. "Poor ki – ow!"

She whipped her hand away and licked the blood away. Kyouya had bitten her a lot more viciously this time. "You don't need to bite! I was just sympathizing with you!"

"It's a reflex."

"How is that a reflex?!"

Kyouya shrugged. Ran let out a frustrated groan. "How is **that** an answer?!"

"You're getting flustered. It's amusing."

Ran rolled her eyes. "God, are you really a kid?"

Kyouya rolled his eyes and settled in more comfortably in his pillows. He looked like he was going to go back to sleep, when he suddenly bolted up and looked at the door warily.

"Oh great, here she comes."

"She?"

"KYOU-KUUUUN!!!!" came a squealing, high pitched feminine voice. Ran clapped her hands over her ears. Glancing at Kyouya, she saw that he had earplugs in place already.

_Where the hell did he get those?!_

A very pretty woman, with long dark brown hair and blue eyes burst in to the room. Ran was rather freaked out by now. The woman ignored her and dove straight for Kyouya.

Kyouya, however, had moved out on to Ran's lap when she wasn't looking. The woman crashed.

Silence…

"Uh, hey, is she okay?" Ran sweat-dropped.

"Don't mind her, she's always like that," Kyouya replied with a shrug. "Now let me sit in your lap for a little while longer until she leaves."

"Er… sure?"

"Kyou-kun!" wailed the woman, suddenly sitting up. "How mean! You moved!"

"Don't tackle someone who spits up blood regularly, idiot," Kyouya snorted.

"Aww, is poor Kyou-kun sad?" the woman pulled puppy eyes on him.

Kyouya rolled his eyes again and looked away.

"Uh…" Ran felt akward, a first in years. "Hello?"

"Oh! Hello!" the woman greeted. "Nice to meet you! I am Michiru!"

"N-Nice to meet you too… Are you Kyou-chan's sister?"

"Sister? Oh no!" the woman giggled. She had an attractive laugh. "I'm his mother. Miyagi Michiru at your service."

_Mother!?_ Ran's eyes bulged. This woman could not be Kyouya's mother. One, she looked too young. Two, she acted like an overhyper teenager. And three, Kyouya talked to her in an incredibly rude manner.

So no, this woman could not be his mother.

But, apparently she was.

"Has my sweet widdle Kyou-kun been a good boy?" Michiru asked in an overly cutesy manner. Ran inwardly grimanced.

"Yes, he has been a good boy," Ran said, just as cutesy.

"That's good! Mama has to go now!" Michiru ran out of the room that she had just entered one minute before.

"Uh… just like that?!" Ran stared after her. "What a weird mother…"

"She is weird, isn't she," Kyouya said with a sigh. "And I'm stuck with her. Can you believe she used to be the president of a disciplinary committee?"

"What, seriously?"

"Yeah, some no-named town named Namimori," Kyouya shrugged. "She's taken me there several times. There's nothing really interesting that happens there, although it is kinda nice. Really peaceful sort of place."

"Namimori, huh…"

Ran felt an old tingle in the back of her spine. One that told her that something would happen. _Namimori…_

Kyouya shifted off of Ran's lap and moved back underneath the covers. "She apparently ruled with an iron fist and was a terrifying woman, but then afterwards, she got married, had kids, and turned in to an overly doting mother."

"Wow really?"

"Yeah, but apparently she's still a dictator," Kyouya rolled his eyes. "Ever since I got sick, she's given all the maids and helpers strict instructions to not let me escape. Not that they can stop me anyway. I sneak past them all every time."

"Haha, so… what does your mom do for a living?"

Kyouya pulled up short and looked away.

"Kyou-chan?"

"A-Anyway!" Kyouya suddenly changed the subject. "Why the hell are you in my room? I didn't ask you to come here!"

"… Didn't we just cover that fifteen minutes ago?"

"Really? I don't remember."

"… What's with you?"

Kyouya pointedly ignored her. Ran wondered if Michiru did something particularily shameful. She **was** a pretty woman.

Ran was jerked out of her thoughts when another female's voice pierced the air. Only this time, Kyouya actually perked up and looked hopefully at the door.

"Onii-sama!" a small girl, about six or seven poked her head in through the door. "Onii-sama! Did you run away again?"

"Kiki," Kyouya smiled that smile that made Ran's heart scream _CUTE!!!_ "Kiki, come here."

Kiki scurried close, but then backed away, looking at Ran a little nervously. Ran smiled gently at her, but Kiki stayed back.

"It's fine," Kyouya reached out a hand. "She's okay. You don't have to be scared of her… I think…" he muttered under his breath.

Kiki looked reassured and scrambled to sit on the opposite side of Ran, next to her brother. "Pleased to meet you," she bowed her head politely at Ran before turning back to Kyouya. "Onii-sama! Did you run away again?"

"Yeah, but I got caught."

"You're so mean! Onii-sama should have taken Kiki with you!"

"I wanted to, but you were asleep."

"Then you should have woken Kiki up!"

"You looked too cute. I couldn't bring myself to do it."

"Onii-sama shouldn't be swayed by cuteness!"

Kyouya rolled his eyes and whispered quietly to Ran, "It's her fault that I am."

Ran had to admit, Kiki was very cute. She had naturally doe brown eyes that seemed to look right through you and know everything. Her face was almond shaped with soft black hair surrounding it, black as a raven's feather. She was even smaller than Kyouya, but her skin was a healthy tanned color, showing that she went out a good deal, opposite of Kyouya's ivory skin. She looked so sweet and vunerable, it was hard to not hug her.

Really, she was similar to her brother in that retrospect…

"Next time Onii-sama runs away, Onii-sama should take Kiki with him!" Kiki declared.

Kyouya shook his head and smiled slightly. "Okay okay, I'll tell you next time, okay?"

"Yes!" Kiki smiled with triumph. "Can Kiki sleep here with Onii-sama tonight?"

"Taking precautions, huh?" Kyouya sighed. "Fine, get your futon."

"Yaaay!" Kiki jumped up and sped out the door.

"… What a speedy and cheerful family," Ran couldn't help but sweat-drop. "Are they always like this?"

"Yes…" Kyouya's lips twitched. "But if it's Kiki, then it's okay."

"She talks really cute," Ran chuckled.

"Yeah… shouldn't you go home? It's 11:30 by now."

"Ah, yeah…" Ran stood up. "I guess you're right."

"I'll get Ayu to send you out."

"Ayu?"

"The servant here. She met you at the door."

"Oh, it's okay, she won't remember that I'm here."

"Huh?"

Ran smiled at him and petted his head. "I only remain in the memory of those I want to remain in. Besides, I can stay a little longer."

"Your parents will be worried."

"They won't worry."

"Why?" Kyouya's eyes were curious.

"Because," Ran stepped out of the room, a mysterious smile on her face. "They… haven't been around for a very long time now."

Kyouya cocked his head confusedly. He opened his mouth to ask her what she meant, but by then, she had already disappeared.

* * *

"Onii-sama, did that pretty girl go already?"

Kiki rolled over on to her stomach and snuggled next to Kyouya's slender frame.

"She's not a pretty girl," Kyouya snorted. "And yeah, she left. She said some pretty weird stuff though."

"Like what?"

"Like no one here will remember her."

"Whaat? That makes no sense to Kiki! Kiki remembers her very well!"

"Yeah, see? It makes no sense."

At that moment, Ayu walked in. "Young Master, Little Mistress, good night," she said quietly.

"G'night Ayu-san!" Kiki giggled as Ayu kissed her cheek.

Kyouya hurriedly pulled up the covers over his face before Ayu could get him. "Hey, Ayu," his voice came out muffled. "Do you remember the girl that came here before?"

"Girl?"

"Yeah, the one that escorted me back home after I fainted."

"Girl…?"

Ayu frowned. "I don't recall a girl. Wasn't it Master Fon who brought you back?"

"What? No, it was Chi Amaya."

Ayu frowned again before her face cleared up. "Oh, I get it. Young Master, it's cute, but you shouldn't have imaginary friends at your age."

"What?" Kyouya pulled down the covers. "Imaginary friends? What are you talking about now?"

Ayu laughed understandingly. "It must be. No one has that sort of strange name," Ayu shook her head. "Well, good night," she stood up and turned off the lights before exiting.

Kiki watched her go silently before turning back to her brother. "Ayu-san really doesn't remember Amaya-neesan!"

"She's getting old, of course she can't remember," Kyouya scoffed and flipped over. "It's not like Amaya was invisible, they talked!"

_But really…_ Kyouya thought later in to the night when Kiki was asleep. _It certaintly is a strange thing…_

* * *

Ran laughed softly as she peeked in to Kyouya's window from the outside. "He looks so mild when he's sleeping…"

She jumped off the roof easily and landed quietly.

"Mistress…"

Ran ducked behind a tree and listened in.

"What is it, Ayu-chan?" asked Michiru.

"Mistress, I think Young Master Kyouya is having imaginary friends now."

"What? Kyou-kun isn't the type to believe in something like that."

"But he was just insisting now that a girl named Chi Amaya brought him back. I didn't see a girl around at all."

"Hmm, that is rather strange, but it's probably nothing to worry about!" Michiru's cheerful voice said. Ran fell over.

(Author's Note: For those of you who have no idea what 'fell over' means, you know how when something weird or ironic, or just plain stupid happens in the anime, and the anime characters just fall over on to the ground in weird poses because they're so exasperated/surprised? It's like that.)

_Such a carefree woman…_ Ran sweat-dropped as she righted herself.

"I really don't remember there being a girl…"

_Of course you wouldn't remember…_

"I don't either! Haha, I bet Kyou-kun's just growing up and dreaming of girls now!"

"That would make sense!"

_I made it so that you couldn't remember..._

The smile on Ran's face became even larger.

_That's one of the abilities for Night users…_

Ran checked the size of the wall surrounding the house, took a few steps back, and took a running start to jump over it.

_To swallow and give nothing back, making you enter an endless sea of darkness…_

Ran looked around to make sure no one saw her before walking down the street.

_Making your fears come alive under the illusions of the night…_

She turned to the right and passed Arakaki's pet clinic.

_Able to erase anything and conceal everything, absorbing…_

_Whether they be lives…_

_Dreams…_

_My own presence..._

_Or memories._

Ran pauses and turns her head at you. She smiles at you before she puts a finger to her lips.

"Shhh…"

* * *

I read that "Deming" means rightous order, or something similar that had to do with discipline. It took me a long time to find a name like that ^^'!

Plz review!


	6. Skylark Arc III: Kyouya's Flames

A kiss in here, very unwilling on our poor skylark (and rather unwillingly on my poor OC), but Hibari can probably handle it.

**Title:**_ Memories Never Fade  
_**Chapter:**_ Skylark Arc Part III: Kyouya's Flames_  
**Rating:** _T, may be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_ Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_ Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_Four_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_ Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _Ran is curious about what sort of flames Kyouya might have, but there's only one way to find out, and both are VERY reluctant._

_

* * *

_

Ran skipped through the snow, not even leaving a footprint behind. As she passed Arakaki's clinic, she noticed a rather loud commotion coming from behind the building.

Being a bit (translation: a hell) of a nosy person, Ran immediately jumped on to the rooftop and peered over the side.

Kyouya had been surrounded (judging by the bag next to him, he had been taking out the trash) by three other figures that were a lot bigger than him, and a lot older too. They were talking excitedly among themselves. Something about, "kidnap the rich kid."

Ran rolled on to her side and watched absentmindedly. She was curious to see how Kyouya would worm out of this one.

Ran looked behind her to make sure that no one was coming before turning back to watch the scene. What she saw made her jaw drop.

Kyouya was pouting.

More specifically, he had turned on the huge puppy eyes that he had given Ran for the first time, only a hundred times more effective. His bottom lip trembled and he made a tiny whimper. A pink blush was on his cheeks and a tear was welling up. The other men were speechless.

"G-Gah… my conscience…" groaned one man and turned away. "I can't do it!"

The other two men also turned away and began to argue furiously among themselves.

"Let's just let the kid go. We can kidnap someone else."

"You kidding me? This guy's family is the richest in this town!"

"But that look he's giving us! I just can't bear it!"

"Urgh… that's true…"

Ran saw something that the three men hadn't while they were talking.

Kyouya was reaching for a trash can lid. Slowly, so that they didn't see him move.

And then…

_CRASH!!! SMACK!!! WHAM!!!_

Ran winced. That must have **hurt**.

Kyouya grinned ferally at the blood dripping off the lid as he carefully wiped it off on one of the men's jackets. The sweet, innocent look was gone, replaced by a dark smirk.

"Losers," he scoffed. He threw the trash in to the trash can, replaced the now clean lid, and walked away.

And Ran just stared.

"Wow, that was… interesting…"

* * *

Later that day, Kyouya walked out the clinic, yawning tiredly. He had to go home, for now.

"Hey, Kyou-chan!" Kyouya blinked and looked at the wall next to him. Ran was sitting there, licking a popsicle stick.

"… A popsicle during winter? Are you crazy?"

"Frozen goodies are good in any season!" Ran replied cheerily. "Nice job on smacking those idiots back there. Want one?"

Kyouya grudgingly accepted one. "… Thanks, you saw that?"

"Yep! Really cute face that you had there too."

Kyouya smirked at that.

"But do you think that was very fair?" Ran asked.

"All's fair in love, war, and humanity," Kyouya shrugged. "Besides, if you know you have a cute face, then what don't you use it to your advantage?" he grinned evilly.

Ran stared at him. "… Mist user. Definitely Mist user."

"A what user?"

"Nothing."

Ran licked the last off of her popsicle, rewrapped it in to its wrapper, and stuck it in her pocket. All the while, she contemplated silently, watching Kyouya from behind.

_Genma-chan told me… that when a child is born, their flames are all originally sky flames…_

Kyouya suddenly winced as he felt something cold on his nose and looked up. "It's snowing again…"

_But as they get older, their flames develop according to their personality. Around age 10, their flame stabilizes. He's about nine right now too…_

_He must be a Mist user right now, I can feel it…_

_But there's only one way to find out…_

_Oh, god, he's going to hate me for this._

"Hey, Kyou-chan…"

"Hm?" Kyouya glanced back at her. "Yes?"

Ran bent over and gently brushed her fingers over his cold cheeks. Kyouya took a step back.

"Amaya…?"

_Chu._

Ran landed a gentle kiss on his mouth. Kyouya's whole face turned brilliant red.

Unfortunately for him, Ran had caught a hold of his hands and didn't let him pull away. Kyouya squawked uncomfortably when she slid her tongue in to his mouth.

Finally, Kyouya broke away, panting. "W-What was that?!"

"I just felt like it," Ran shrugged.

Kyouya's face was still red, even as he turned and ran away. "S-Stupid!"

The moment Kyouya was out of sight, Ran stuck two of her fingers in to her mouth and drew out the saliva that she had gotten from Kyouya's mouth. Breathing deeply, two flames lit up on her fingers one after the other. The first was indigo, the second was violet.

"Hm… Mist and Cloud, huh…" Ran let the flames go out, then popped the fingers back in to her mouth and licked them clean before wiping them on her skirt. "I can see the Mist, but Cloud? He seems pretty attached to his family… Is this what Genma-chan meant?"

**_~Flashback~_**

**_"Sometimes, flames can adjust in to what people will be in the future, instead of now. For example, if someone had Rain as their main flames, then they are calm, kind people. But if they also had Storm, then they could become incredibly hot tempered later in life… Hey, are you listening?!" Genma hit Ran's head with a ruler, which was drooping as she let out a fake snore._**

**_~End Flashback~_**

"Hmm, now that I think about it, I didn't pay him back for that whack on the head… When I go back, I'll make sure to do that."

* * *

Hahaha... I don't know what I was thinking for this one. I wanted a bit of 18OC, but this is totally not what I had in mind... Oh well. Next chapter is underway!

R&R as usual!

BTW, for future reference, is Dino's family called Cavallone, or Chiavorone? Both are put up in the manga translations, so I can't tell which one is real -_-.


	7. Skylark Arc IV: Family Secrets

THIS CHAPTER IS HORRIBLE.

But I've explained why on the bottom. Sorry for the late update. I'm really lazy.

**Title:**_ Memories Never Fade  
_**Chapter:**_ Skylark Arc Part IV First Half: Family Secrets_  
**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_ Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_ Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_Four_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_ Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _Ran is curious (again) about Kyouya's family. What secrets could be hidden underneath their unique personalities? I swear, the next chapter will be better than this one._

_

* * *

_

Ran stretched and glanced down the street at the Miyagi mansion. She was bored and had nothing to do, so what better than to visit her favorite human? Well, current favorite.

Ran wondered if she should erase her presence for this. She didn't hate Kyouya's mother or nanny, but she didn't want them to notice her.

It'd be best for Kyouya to invite her in.

* * *

Right on cue, as she waited for an hour outside of the gate to Kyouya's house, Kyouya himself came walking up the street, coming back from Arakaki's. She allowed her defense drop, scaring the life out of the poor boy when Ran just suddenly appeared out of no where.

"Where did you come from!?"

"Well, see, my mom and my dad got together and – OW!"

Kyouya had given her a flying kick. "Not that corny crap! I mean why did you suddenly pop out in front of my house out of thin air?!"

"I just wanted to visit you. You're so mean!" Ran pouted, rubbing the sore spot on her hip where Kyouya's foot had landed.

"… I don't believe this," Kyouya said with a sigh. "Let's get this straight, I'm still mad at you."

"For stealing your first kiss…?"

"…" Kyouya gave her another kick.

"OW!! Can't you be gentle with girls?!"

"Only Kiki."

"… Well, that's not biased."

Kyouya rolled his eyes. "Well, come in, I guess," he held open the gate for her, mockingly polite. Ran rolled her eyes disparingly.

"You're such a little brat."

"Takes one to know one."

"Yeah, like I haven't heard THAT before."

Ran walked in, Kyouya shutting the gate after her. As they walked in to the house, Ayu walked out.

"Ah, there you are, Young Master. You were gone a little longer than usual, so I thought that you might have run away again…"

"Jeez, you worry too much, Baba*," snorted Kyouya. "And even if I did run away," he turned and glared at Ran, "this neechan would probably grab me again…"

"Neechan?" Ayu looked around in confusion. "What neechan?"

"Huh?" Kyouya looked at her strangely. "Of course, I'm talking about this neechan right here…"

He turned and pointed at her, then blinked. Ran was gone!

"I don't see anyone Young Master…" Ayu bent forward and pressed her hand to Kyouya's forehead. "Are you hallucinating?"

"I am NOT hallucinating!!" sputtered Kyouya, angry. "There really was a girl here just now!"

"… Young Master, I know that you're getting to that age, but seeing girls where there's no one is not very healthy for you…"

"GAH!! Forget it!" Kyouya stamped past her into the house. "Don't disturb me!"

He marched up to his room, then flung himself down on to his futon. "Where did she go…?"

"Right here, honey," Ran suddenly materialized next to him, her slightly taller, slender body closer than he would like.

If he was someone else, he might have really screamed and brought his parents running.

But since he was Kyouya, his entire body merely bristled like an angry cat's due to shock, and then sat up and aimed a kick at her, which Ran narrowly dodged.

"Why so mad?"

"GET OUT OF MY BED!!!"

Ran laughed and rolled out from under the blankets. "You're so mean, Kyou-chan!"

"SHUT UP. I am SO sick of you just SUDDENLY popping out of NOWHERE. You owe me an explanation of how you do that, NOW!!"

"You wanna learn? It's easy!" Ran grinned up at him. "Just conceal your presence, hide in your companion's blindspot, and there you go!"

"… It can't be that simple. I do that regularly, and some people still notice me."

"You do it regularly?"

"Yeah, for my night job –"

Kyouya blinked and instantly shut his mouth. Ran looked interested.

"You have a night job? Does it have anything to do with all those booby-traps outside in your yard?"

"How did you – "

"I almost got killed by those! All I wanted to do was peek in your window and see if you were sleeping or changing, but then this weird net just suddenly – "

_WHAM!!!_

Kyouya had unsuccessfully tried to slam his foot in to Ran's face, which she quickly blocked.

"You were SPYING!??! To see if I was CHANGING?!?! What ARE you?! A perverted STALKER?!" Kyouya's voice got higher with each note. Ran noted two things. One, it was a miracle that Kyouya's family hadn't come to inspect the noise. Two, Kyouya would make a very good singer, especially if he could still hold that note after his voice changed.

"Yes, pretty much. Now what's this night job?"

"Nothing that you need to know," Kyouya snapped, now totally irritated that this conversation was going no where. "It's a family business."

"I wanna knoooow," complained Ran.

"…"

A few minutes later, Ran was rubbing her rear, which she was sure had a dent from Kyouya's foot. Kyouya had literally kicked her hard out of the house.

But Kyouya's job had sounded interesting.

So maybe she'd tag along.

* * *

The ending is rather weak, but that was because this was actually half of another chapter. But I needed to edit the other half, so I just put this one up...

*Baba: I believe that this is a very rude term for 'old lady'. I'm not entirely sure.

R&R as usual!


	8. Skylark Arc IV 2: Night Job

I liked writing this chapter, though it may have been a little cheesy.

But I still liked it XD

**Title:**_ Memories Never Fade  
_**Chapter:**_ Skylark Arc Part IV Second Half: Night Job_  
**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_ Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_ Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_Four_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_ Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _The mystery of the Miyagi family is solved, introduced with Kyouya's alter ego. He is Tori Skylark. Assassin for hire._

_

* * *

_

"Get up, Kyouya."

Kyouya spat out a clot of blood that had come from biting his own tongue. He glared at his opponent.

"I'm going to get you for that last blow, Fon."

Fon smiled recklessly. "I doubt it, Kyouya. I'm way stronger than you are."

Kyouya scowled as he crouched in a ready position. "You won't be for long."

Kyouya dashed forward and lashed out with his foot. Fon dodged quickly, then brought up his own leg to once more kick his little brother in the stomach.

His leg met air however, as Kyouya had jumped beforehand and landed a solid blow on his older brother's face. Fon gave a yelp of pain, grabbed Kyouya by the back of the collar, and flung him to the ground. Kyouya's face met the floor with a loud crack.

"… Kyouya?"

Kyouya didn't move.

"Omigod, Kyouya?!" Fon gasped and quickly flipped his brother over. Kyouya's nose was bleeding, but it didn't seem broken. "Kyouya! Are you okay? Don't die on – urk!"

Kyouya's fist had smashed in to his brother's chin. "Whose dying!?" he demanded angrily.

Fon dropped Kyouya, who landed neatly on his feet, and rubbed his aching jaw. "Owowowow… Kyouya, don't do that! I was worried about you, you know that?"

(Author's Note: Woah, I feel like I'm writing Dino here. So random.)

"Yeah yeah, whatever," Kyouya muttered. He felt uncomfortable when others worried about him, maybe because he didn't like making people worry. This was the behavior result of having a disease that naturally made people fret about you. After a while, you get sick of people fussing over you. For Kyouya, it had been like this since he was three.

Fon sighed. "Kyouya, what's the matter with you? Since this afternoon, you've been completely agitated. And it's showing in your training. You missed the target five times today!" he gestured to the shooting range that they had a couple feet away. "And you're getting cuts from sword practice, and you couldn't dodge all the knives and rubber bullets blindfolded like you usually can. Something wrong?"

Kyouya scowled. "Nothing happened."

"Does it have to do with Chi-san?"

Kyouya's eyes shot up, a little alarmed. "You remember her?"

"Of course. That pretty girl that brought you home right?"

Kyouya raised an eyebrow. "Pretty? Fon, do you like her?"

"Eh…?" Fon flushed. "N-No! Besides, she's too old for me…"

"To old? Isn't the other way around? She's twelve!"

"Oh… right," Fon frowned and scratched his head. "I don't know… She just feels older. Some sort of sixth sense, I guess?"

"… Your sixth sense is horrible."

"Sorry… W-Well, let's get back to training!"

* * *

From outside, Ran watched amusedly as Fon and Kyouya sparred. So Fon could remember her, and sense that she was different? Superb.

Grinning, she made a call to a certain organization that she had worked with several times in the past. She still worked for them, going under aliases upon aliases, pretending to be her own daughter. After a male's voice answered the phone, she talked in Italian, with a no-nonsense tone.

"Yo, Vongola Nono? This is Suzuki Aoi. I've found another potential candidate here. After a bit, he may be good enough to become an Arcobaleno. Hm? Oh, he's around… somewhere between ages seventeen and twenty-five, I guess. Kind of hard to tell. Yeah, I'll keep an eye on him. No problem. Ciao."

Grinning, she hung up and leaned back. She enjoyed scouting people out for the Vongola family. After being saved by Vongola Quarto (the weird one who used forks as weapons), she had donated her services to the Family.

(To tell the truth, she could have saved herself. It was just a mugging in the slums of Italy, but Ran always repaid favors. It was like a habit.)

"Onii-sama?"

Ran paused and leaned forward to see little Kiki walking in between the dueling brothers, holding some rather important looking papers. "Am I interrupting?"

"It's fine," gasped out Kyouya, who looked like he had just gone through a real workout. "What's up?"

"It's Onii-sama's turn again," Kiki handed him the papers. "Looks like it's down in Tokyo."

"… Tokyo."

"Yes?"

"This is Okiwana Prefecture."*

"Good luck with the traveling, Onii-sama. You leave early tomorrow morning."

"See you when you get back, Kyouya."

"Oi!"

Kiki and Fon scampered out of the room, giggling. Kyouya sighed and read through the papers. "Jeez, this night job will be the death of me…"

Ran's ears perked up and leaned forward, another grin on her face. The night job? Tomorrow morning?

She'd be there.

* * *

Kabuto Ryuu, age fourty-five, all around millionare by illegal means and big seller on the black market. Seemingly a kind and wonderful man. In reality, he was sick and twisted. Old Yakuza member that sold out his own gang for money. That type of guy.

Kabuto Ryuu leaned back, chuckling. He'd got two cute little girls this afternoon. Both were here on a holiday with their family. Selling them would be easy.

Or so he thought.

"Yo, Kabuto Ryuu," came a chilling voice. "Remember me?"

Ryuu turned around, eyes widening as he saw one of the little girls that he had captured this morning. Only that she was dressed in a black suit and tie, instead of that rather charming blouse and jean-skirt combo. "You! Why are you up here?"

"I know all about you, Kabuto Ryuu," the girl said softly, stepping in to the room. "Capturing young girls and selling them for the highest bidder, whether it be their organs or their whole body."

"Who are you!?"

The girl smirked and spread her arms out wide. "Your God, or your Devil. You choose. Either way, I hold your life in my hands."

Ryuu found himself trembling. "Y-You should be down in your cage!"

"You can't cage a Skylark," the girl drew out a gun from her pocket. "And for the record, I'm a boy."

(Author's Note: "Skylark" is said in English here. So are the other bird names.)

"Skylark?!" Ryuu's eyes widened. "No… Not the Tori family!"

(Author's Note: "Tori" is Japanese for bird.)

"Oh?" Skylark raised an eyebrow. "You know of them?"

"I've heard of them… Yes…" Ryuu gulped, but tried to appear cool and in control. He casually strolled back and forth in the room, mind running at a hundred miles per hour for a way out.

"The Tori family is an illustrious family that names their children after birds. They are said to be descended from one of the oldest and most powerful ninja families from long ago. They are gifted with amazing fighting skills, passed down from generations, and secrets, and treasures and weapons. They are the elite assassin family that can kill anyone, even the President of America."

"Oh yeah," Skylark toyed with his gun. "Mom got the job to kill George Bush fifteen times, but we declined. Mom said that it was a waste of time, because they'll just elect someone worse."

Ryuu nodded vigorously, inching slowly to his desk, which, he finally remembered, had a secret button underneath to bring his guards running.

"Y-Yes, that is true. But I heard that the successor of the Tori family, Robin, married the young head of the Miyagi family, the well known law enforcement family," Ryuu babbled. "And they had three children."

"Pretty much," Skylark aimed at Ryuu's head and heart, deciding where to shoot. "Dad knew about Mom's job, but loved her anyway. Mom fell head over heels for him and they got married. Dad thought that Mom retired from her assassin ways, but she personally trained us in secret. I am Skylark, my elder brother is Cardinal, my little sister is Sparrow. But we all have real names. Are you done the history lesson now, Kabuto Ryuu? I'm getting bored."

Ryuu let out a high-pitched giggle that sounded more like a shriek. Just a little more before he could be free. "You musn't be so formal. Simply Ryuu would do nicely."

"I prefer calling my targets by their full name," Skylark smiled dangerously. "It reminds me that they will die by my hand."

"But… But surely, doesn't the influence of your father's side have an effect on you…?" Ryuu squeaked.

"Yeah, a little. I kind of want to be a police officer, but that'll just make this job easier," Skylark smirked. "Just because we enforce the law on others, doesn't mean we follow it ourselves. We are above that," and he pulled the trigger.

Ryuu's hand that had been reaching for the button was shot. Ryuu screamed and clutched it. Skylark laughed, glorying in the pain and blood. "My goodness, did that really hurt?"

Ryuu fell to the ground in agony. Skylark cocked the gun, wild excitement in his eyes.

"Sayonara."

* * *

*Hibari's tonfa are Okinawa weapons, so wouldn't he living in Okinawa make sense in some ways? (total fail)

But this defines some of Hibari's personality traits, including why he calls others by their full name. Usually. He only gives names to those he respects in the future (like he calls Reborn baby/akanbo).

Random Fact that I wanted to share: I discovered that "oozora", which apparently means "sky" does not exist. It is actually "ao sora" which means "blue sky."

Oh, and by the way, for those of you who wonder (this means you, Hibari-chi), the idea of a "childish and feminine Kyouya" was inspired by a picture I saw in an 1896 (Hibari/Chrome) video on youtube. If you wanna see it, the video was titled, 1896 ~Danzai No Hana~ at 0:22 seconds :)

Plz review!


	9. Skylark Arc V: Possible First Love?

WHAT THE FUCK IS WITH THE ANIME!?!?!

... Okay. *breathes deeply*

The manga and the anime are officially splitting in to two different plots. The manga (as we all almost know) is currently within battle with Byakuran and the real Six Funeral Wreaths.

On the other hand, in the anime, Tsuna and rest are going to be temporarily sent back to the past to find the Arcobaleno and pass their trials to get the Arcobaleno seals in order to open the Vongola Box. THERE IS ONLY TSUNA'S BOX, WHAT HAPPENED TO THE REST?!?! ASKJ;LAGSOIJSGJIGS

Amano-senseiii, Director-saaaaan, what are you guys thiiiiinking....

Oh well, on the plus side, we'll be able to meet Fon earlier (and see if he and Hibari really are related XD).

On the negative (or plus, depending on your point of view), there aren't anymore "Haru's Haru Haru Interview Dangerous". T_T

**Title:**_ Memories Never Fade  
_**Chapter:**_ Skylark Arc Part V: Possible First Love?  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_ Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_ Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_Four_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_ Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _Kyouya really is human after, falling in love with a girl whose destiny is forever intertwined with his..._

_

* * *

_

Kyouya sighed and sat next to the body, checking that he was really dead. He stretched.

_Now that that's done, I'd better call in. Oops, I forgot my cellphone. Oh well, I'll just use his._

Kyouya picked up the (very expensive looking) phone from Ryuu's desk and dialed in his mother's number.

"_Hello?_"

"Mom? It's me. I finished the job," Kyouya held the phone away from his ear, covering the closest one with his free hand.

"_YOU FINISHED!?!? I KNEW YOU COULD DO IT KYOU-KUN!! THAT'S MY LITTLE BABY BOY!!! I LOVE YOUUU!!!_"

Kyouya waited a little before putting the phone back to his ear. "You done?"

"_Yes! I'm so proud of you. Okay, now get the data from his computer, so we can make a new hit-list._"

"Right," Kyouya turned on the (very expensive, god this guy had a lot of money) computer and scanned through the files.

"There's too much here. Should I just copy everything?"

"_That'll be fine, I guess. Just don't look at anything naughty that a fourty-five year old man might have~!_"

Kyouya glanced at the half-naked supermodel that Ryuu had as his desktop backround. "… It's a little late to say that, Mom. Anyways, do you want me to transfer his bank account in to ours?"

"_Oooh, that'll be nice~! Hurry up and come home Kyou-kun! Make sure to clean up before you leave~!_"

"What do you think I am, an amatuer?" Kyouya scoffed.

"_Oh, and when you go home? Can you change back in to those cute girl clothes I had you wear? I wanna take a picture~!_"

"NO, Mom."

"_Aww, but you looked so cute! Kyou-kun should have been a girl!_"

"Mom…" Kyouya said warningly.

"_And then I could talk to Kyou-kun all about the finer points of men, and then your first bra,first boyfriend, your first sex partner –_ "

Kyouya slammed the phone shut and broke it in half. "How does a woman like that become a Disciplinary Committee Chairwoman!?" he muttered angrily, a little embarassed.

After transfering all the money and copying all the files on to floppy disks, Kyouya took out bottles of oil from somewhere inside his suit, and poured it all over the room, and especially all over Ryuu's body.

Kyouya went out to the hallway and pulled out some more gallon bottles of oil that he had stored away eariler. No one would come, they had all fallen deep asleep by a gas that Kyouya had spread around.

Kyouya poured oil all over the house. He went down in to the basement and paused. His 'cage' was in the corner by the stairs, and a second cage was next to it…

Kyouya bent over and peered in to the cage. His fellow captive was asleep in the corner, probably because of the gas. She was quite cute (_maybe not as cute as Kiki_, Kyouya thought), with blue-violet hair and a shapely face. She was wearing a simple white dress, with a lacy fringe on the bottom. Her face was covered with tearstains. She was a little younger, maybe by a year.

She hadn't screamed at all when they had captured her. She had only cried silently.

If she had cried loudly, then Kyouya would have probably left her there.

_Damn you Dad, you made me a half good guy._

Kyouya reached in between the bars of the cage and shook her shoulder hard. "Hey, girl, wake up."

The girl stirred and opened her eyes, revealing deep blue sapphires.

"Who…?" she whispered. Kyouya sighed and absentmindedly combed his fingers through the girl's long hair.

"I'm getting you out of here. Can you stand?"

The girl nodded and stood immediately. Kyouya liked her instant reaction and obedience.

"Okay, now do as I say and be quiet. You never know."

Kyouya plucked out one of the hairs on the side of his head – the shorter, tougher hairs – and inserted it into the lock. After a bit of jiggling, the lock came undone and the door swung open.

The girl stepped out, cautiously, but those blue sapphires shone with happiness and admiration. "Thank you," she whispered.

Kyouya took her hand and lead her up the stairs and out the door. The girl almost slipped on the oil a few times, but she always managed to right herself without any help. _Pretty good balance_, Kyouya noted.

Once outside, he let go of her hand. The girl smiled shyly at him. "Thank you," she whispered again.

"Do you know your own way back? To wherever your parents are?"

"Yes."

"Then this is good-bye," Kyouya turned away.

"What is your name?"

Kyouya was slightly off guard. No one had asked him that before. "Skylark," he said automatically.

Then he felt soft lips lightly touch his cheek. He turned, wide-eyed, to the girl, who smiled and quickly ran away.

Kyouya watched her go, brushing his hand over his cheek.

"What's your name?"

He didn't mean to say it out loud. He cursed himself.

The girl heard him and turned to face him.

"Nagi," she whispered.

And then she ran away and disappeared in to the night.

"Nagi," he whispered. It meant calm, to lull. So fitting for her.

Kyouya snapped out of it and shook his head. He had a job to do.

Taking some more oil from behind the garden's bushes, he poured oil over everthing, the trees, the grass, he even splashed it all over the wooden parts of the house.

Finally, he took a match out of his pocket, lit it, and dropped it on to the oil, keeping well out of the way.

Immediately the house was alight, burning fiercely. It vaguely reminded Kyouya of a red rose. Only so much more beautiful in his eyes.

"Well well, so this is your so-called night job?"

Kyouya froze, before scowling, without turning around. "What are you doing here? Amaya?"

Ran stepped out in the light, smirking. "Nice threads."

Kyouya didn't answer.

"So this is your other job huh? By daytime, a vet assisstant, by nighttime, a deadly killer. Very cool. Such secrecy."

Kyouya's frown got bigger, but he didn't say anything still.

"And I saw that kiss. You're popular with the ladies, aren't you?"

Kyouya's face was now red, and Ran was pretty sure it wasn't because of the fire's reflection.

"Of course, she might have been a lesbian and thought that you were a girl. How cute, a lesbian loves the feminine you."

Kyouya finally snapped and lashed out, all nails and teeth. Ran laughed and jumped backwards before he could actually hurt her.

"I was kidding Kyou-chan, you don't have to take it so seriously," Ran tossed her hair over her shoulder and grinned cheekily at him.

He glared at her. "That was uncalled for."

"Yes, yes," Ran turned back to the burning house. "Is that why you called me by my full name when you first met me?"

Kyouya smirked. "Certaintly."

"Wow, that's really mean."

"Does it matter?"

"But," Ran crouched in front of him. "That's not the real reason, right?"

Kyouya was again caught off guard. "Huh?"

"You do it so that you won't get attached to others, right?" Ran tilted her head and smiled sweetly at him. "So that you won't have any guilt when you kill them."

Kyouya's face went red. "S-Stupid," he muttered. "I don't care about that. In the end, everyone may be targets one day."

"Ahh, the life of an assassin," Ran straightened up, took Kyouya's hand, and winked at him. "But you call me by 'Amaya', so we are friends, ne?"

"We aren't – "

"Well, come on then," Ran grinned and tugged on his hand. "I came to keep you company on the airplane ride back."

"… Fine," Kyouya muttered.

"Oh, and maybe I should tell your mother about this girl…?"

"DON'T YOU DARE!!!"

"Shhh! You'll wake up the neighborhood!"

* * *

Kyouya fell asleep on the airplane, leaning on Ran's shoulder. Ran laughed softly and brushed his bangs out of his eyes.

Kyouya leaned in on the touch. "Nagi…" he murmured in his sleep.

Ran chuckled. "Seems pretty smitten to me. I remember my first love," she smiled at the thought. It was when she had come back to life for the second time. He had been a kind, foreign boy a year younger than her (well, her supposed age anyway), visiting Japan and some friends. Ran, who was not treated kindly under any circumstance, was overwhelmed as the boy's acceptance of her. He had even asked her to "join the Family" (ever since she learned mafia lingo, she wondered if he had meant it in another way than from what she had first thought). Even now, she had the necklace he had given her. She had taken it with her to the dead. She fingered it, on her neck, before dropping asleep, her head resting on Kyouya's.

_Giotto…_

* * *

Arrrgh, this chapter was a total fail. I'm still an amatuer at writing romance (considering that I never wanted a romance myself. Boys disgust me. And relationships suck).

Well, review anyway. Next chapter may be up tomorrow or at least in the next three days.


	10. Skylark Arc VI: It's A Party!

Yaaay, I made a new icon!

Theme is _1827, Phone_. Made by yours truly. Took two hours to find the three photos I wanted. Woo... (waves arms tiredly). Best place to find scans of Katekyo Hitman Reborn is here (remove spaces):

http: / / www . anime paper . net / gallery / scans / Katekyo - Hitman - Reborn / 1 /

I've noticed that everyone, even the merchendise makers, seem to ship 1827. I mean seriously, these pics... Just who do you think they are talking to? Duuuh, and there are other 1827 pair ups with these pic brands. Which I will be happily making new icons from ^_^. The themes are: _Fight, Reading, _and _Animals._ Look forward to it!

**Title:**_ Memories Never Fade  
_**Chapter:**_ Skylark Arc Part VI: It's a Party!  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_ Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_ Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_Four_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_ Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _The prelude to the makings of Hibari Kyouya. The story about the birth of the monster._

* * *

"Ohayo!" Ran grinned down at Kyouya, who looked up at her from his chair on the porch. "What are you doing?"

Kyouya just looked at her and then ignored her completely.

"Hey!" she knelt next to him and rested her chin on the armrest. "You should be a little nicer to your friends, you know that?"

"I have not friends," Kyouya deadpanned.

"What about Kiki?"

"She's my sister. That doesn't count."

"… That's sort of cold," Ran remarked.

"KYOU-KUUUUN!!!"

Ran gave a jump and disappeared. Kyouya, who was used to it now, simply waited for his mother to arrive. And she arrived with a loud crash; mainly because she skidded on the wooden floor and smacked headfirst in to Kyouya's chair.

"Waaah!! Kyou-kun!!" Michiru wailed. "It hurrrrts!!!"

Kyouya looked down at her, then pointedly ignored her. In the shadows, Ran stifled a giggle. So Kyouya was like this with everyone?

Michiru cried. "You're so mean! And I was going to talk to you about a party we're having too!"

"Wait, what?" Kyouya looked up at her and met her eyes for the first time.

"We're having a party! More accurately, a family reunion!" Michiru said cheerily. Ran began to wonder if she was bipolar. "Everyone will be coming here! Both from Mama and Papa's sides!"

"WHAT?! Are you crazy?! Both sides of our family hate each other's guts!" Kyouya sputtered. "A family of assassins on one side, and a family of police on the other! There are bound to be sparks to fly!"

"That's why we're having a family reunion, to show that each side is not as bad as it seems," Michiru said, eyes shining. "That way, we'll all live together happily ever after! Don't forget to pick out your clothes later!" and she skipped away.

"Mom…" Kyouya sighed. Ran stepped out of the shadows.

"How cool! A family reunion!" Ran remarked.

Kyouya looked up at her and sighed. "Why is it that all women that surround me are like this?"

"Not all women, Kyou-chan," Ran grinned at him. "What about that cute Nagi girl from a week ago?"

Kyouya looked down, a little flustered. "Whatever," he muttered.

"So that isn't a rather well done painting of her up in your room?"

"Wha – " Kyouya leapt up and glared at her furiously, a blush on his face. "You've been in my room?! Without permission?!"

"Yep," Ran grinned.

"WHY DO YOU KEEP INTRUDING EVERYWHERE THAT I DON'T WANT YOU TO?!!"

"…" Ran stared at him in bewilderment before bursting in to laughter.

"W-What?"

"I'm sorry, but that sounded… so… wrong…!" Ran giggled.

Kyouya thought about it for a moment, and then turned completely flustered. "Pervert!" he squawked.

"Oh?" Ran leered at him. "Could it be that you become easily embarassed at the idea of anything sexual?"

"D-Do not," Kyouya scowled, his cheeks still a slight red.

"I bet you do," Ran whispered, and pressed a nipping kiss at the base of Kyouya's neck.

"Ah!" Kyouya squeaked and pulled back. "W-What are you doing!? Perverted woman!!"

"So you do get flustered."

"ANYONE WOULD BE FLUSTERED FROM THAT!!!"

Ran laughed and grinned at him. "I can't wait! You should introduce me!"

"You're not allowed to come!"

"Whaaat? That's so unfair!!" Ran complained. "I want to meet your relatives!"

"I'm thinking of not attending myself," Kyouya relaxed back in to his chair. "I dislike socializing with others. And I hate large groups of people."

"Why is that?"

"I don't like it when there are so many people. It makes me feel suffocated."

"That's not good! You should learn to like people, and see their good sides," Ran bent forward and looked up at him. "That's what I did."

"Why should I want to do what you do?"

"You jerk!"

Hibari sighed. With the party tonight, and the annoying woman next to him now, he sure wasn't going to get any peace at all, now was he?

He did not know how right he was.

* * *

"Come on," complained Michiru. "Kyou-kun, PLEASE go downstairs!"

The party had started, and things were actually going pretty well. The people were mingling nicely, with no hostility. Maybe this was a pretty good idea after all.

The only problem was that the Master and Mistress's youngest son refused to attend.

"Kyou-kun, I didn't make you wear a dress (though you would've looked stunning in one), so will you PLEASE come?"

"NO," Kyouya, who was lying on his futon, turned away on his side and continued reading his book. "I refuse to go down there and suffocate."

"You aren't going to suffocate, Kyou-kun. Come on, even all your cousins are down there! Don't you want to say hello?"

"Not really. If they want to see me, they can come up here, without everyone else."

"Kyou-kuuun," Michiru let out a frustrated sigh. "Oh, fine. Be a killjoy, I'm going downstairs to have fun. You may join us any time you wish."

And with that, she turned out of the room and walked out. When she opened the door, another person stepped in.

"Oh! Dear!"

Kyouya looked up again. "Father?"

"Are you sure you don't want to come, Kyouya?" his father, Miyagi Deming, bent down next to him.

His father was a handsome man, and looked a good deal like Fon. His black hair was messy, like all the other males in the household. Kyouya and Fon had gotten their strange eye color from their father, which was a stormy gray-blue, and yet full of light, making it look almost silver. Kyouya hoped that his feminine features would disappear as he grew up, to look more like his father, who was the very picture of dignified masculinity.

"I don't want to," Kyouya replied, more quietly. Unlike his mother, Kyouya treated his father with utmost respect that almost bordered awe. He idolized his father, who was strict, and yet gentle to those that he cared about.

Deming's lips gave a little quirk of a smile. "Alright, but like your mother said, you can come join us at anytime. By the way, these are for you."

Kyouya looked down at his father's hands, shocked. In Deming's hands were a pair of bright silver tonfa. Kyouya reached out and grasped them. They fit in to his hands easily and were a bit heavy. He gave them a few practice swings to test them out. They made a satisfying swishing noise through the air.

"For me?" he asked breathlessly.

"Of course," his father patted his head. "I've known that you wanted these for a long time now (Kyouya flushed), and I thought that maybe I should give you a pair. Tomorrow, we'll start training on how to use these. I've already taught you the basics, but you haven't actually gotten a chance to try it out."

"But… why tonight?" Kyouya was happy, but confused.

Deming paused, turned around, and waved to his wife to leave. Michiru pouted, but complied.

Deming turned back to his son. "I have the feeling that you'll need them tonight," he said gently. "Like you, I protested having this party, since our family is, er, not on very good terms, but your mother wouldn't have it. In case of that, you'll need something to defend yourself with. And…" Deming looked quietly thoughtful. "There's something wrong today. Something is the air is telling me that tonight isn't going to be a good night."

Kyouya cocked his head confusedly. Deming laughed at the bewildered expression on his son's face. He bent over and kissed Kyouya's crown. "But maybe I'm just being paranoid. Be good, Kyouya," he said, and left.

Kyouya gave a silent sigh of relief. Maybe now he could get some peace and quiet. He put down the tonfa, knowing that he'd get a chance to use them later.

And he did get a bit of quiet for a while, but then loud noises started coming from downstairs.

"What the hell…" he muttered, before ignoring it. "Whatever… Mom and Father can handle it…"

There was a loud bang. Kyouya sat up quickly. It sounded familiar… like… a gunshot?

Kyouya gave a sigh and fell backwards in to his blankets. "I KNEW this party was a bad idea. Now it looks like I'm going to have major cleanup tomorrow."

Mind you, he didn't think that anyone acutally DIED. Both sides of his family were fighters, and even the youngest ones should be able to evade the bullets. It was a thing that happened since they were born. It was an expectation.

However, there were suddenly screams and way too many loud noises for comfort. Kyouya scowled and sat up, angry that his peace was being disturbed. Grabbing his tonfa, he marched over to the door and slid it open to give the people downstairs a piece of his mind.

What he hadn't expected was the tip of a gun pushing its way in to his mouth.

Wide-eyed, Kyouya looked up to see a familiar face, one so familiar that it hurt.

"Arakaki-sensei…?"

"Good evening, Miyagi-kun."

* * *

Here's where the fireworks start. Good luck, Kyouya~!

Review! And the next chapter will definitely be violent and angst!

* * *


	11. Skylark Arc VII: Betrayal

Sorry for the late update people, some stuff had come up...

Also, I've been intrigued by a new manga I picked up called _Karneval_. It features a very cute Tsuna-like (only a hell lot more innocent) character named "Nai", and a rather Hibari-like (only a little more talkative and emotional) character named "Gareki". I'm not kidding, they **look** a lot like their counterparts, and Gareki has the same personality problem as Hibari (disliking the corrupted world, only opens up to a few people [Nai], abandons others and schemes for his own gain [at least until Nai comes in XD]). I almost at fainted at these two pages because Gareki was having a rather emotional moment and looked... how should I put it... so damn **fuckable**. And he looks so much like the TYL Hibari (though ironically, Gareki is supposedly fifteen) that I had to go back to the KHR manga and compare.

Here are the pages (remove spaces). If you haven't read this manga, then I suggest looking at the two pages to make you curious, and then start from chapter one :D

http : / / www . onemanga . com / Karneval / 8 / 09 /  
(Ignore the panels on top, you won't get it. Just scroll down to the bottom instead)

http : / / www . onemanga . com / Karneval / 8 / 15 /  
(This page also shows Nai. He's rather Tsuna-like, only really, **really** pure)

And AGGGGGGGGH!!!! Dammit, there goes my whole Fon-Hibari relationship thing. FON'S EYES ARE BROWN DAMMIT. *cries*

Okay, I'm overreacting, but I'm just really disappointed...

**Title:**_ Memories Never Fade  
_**Chapter:**_ Skylark Arc Part VII: Betrayal  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_ Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Action/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_ Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!! And there will be more!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_Four_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_ Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _Even after his loved ones death, the skylark must continue to fly..._

* * *

Kyouya gave a yelp of pain as Arakaki kicked him across the room. Normally, he wouldn't have gotten hit, but he was too surprised this time. Of all people, he least expected his vet and employer to storm in here with a gun.

Kyouya looked at Arakaki closely. Could it be that he was drunk? A possiblity, but it didn't look like it. Arakaki looked completely sane… well, as sane as a man with a gun could look.

"A-Arakaki-sensei…?"

Arakaki looked coldly down on him and raised his right leg to give him another kick. Kyouya was ready for it this time and blocked it. Swiping at the vet's left leg with his tonfa, catching him off balance and making him fall. Kyouya shot out of the room and practically flew downstairs towards the dining room.

What met his eyes was complete destruction.

There were more men, maybe about twenty, all with guns and the same look as Arakaki. Kyouya's eyes widened as he realized that his relatives were all lying on the floor.

With blood leaking out of bullet holes.

Dead.

_NO!!_ Kyouya's mind screamed and he turned to flee. Suddenly, something grabbed him by the waist from behind and forced a cloth over his mouth. He couldn't breath, he couldn't yell, all he could do was struggle…

The world turned black.

* * *

Kyouya hit his head.

More accurately, someone dropped him on his head, forcing him to awake.

"Onii-sama!"

The cry made Kyouya sit up, just in time to see one of the men slap his younger sister in the face. Fury gripped Kyouya, and he leapt up to take revenge.

His wrist gave an uncomfortable throb and he was jerked back. He looked down at his right hand, seeing that it was handcuffed around a metal pole firmly stuck in to the ground, the kind used for pitching tents. It had been recently hammered in.

Kyouya gave it a few more unsuccessful tugs, trying to get free, but the handcuff just dug in at his wrist, leaving angry red marks. He scowled. What was going on?!

He looked around the room to take in the situation. Even more men had appeared, making about fourty in total, fourty-one, counting Arakaki. His parents and his little sister were across the room, tied up and with only Kiki being concious. She was crying.

All the men were covered in blood.

His family's blood.

Pure, unadulterated anger coursed through him, and he strained against the bonds again. One man stepped forward, but Arakaki waved him back. He walked up to Kyouya himself, bending down with a cold look on his face.

"How does it feel?" he whispered. "Seeing your precious people disappearing?"

Kyouya scowled and spat at him.

Arakaki punched him across the face.

Kyouya fell and spat out a clot of blood. Damn this guy! What was happening?!

The confusions must have shown on his face. Arakaki smirked and sat back on his heels.

"All these men in front of you have been family of the victims of either the Tori's assassinations, or the arrests of the Miyagi's. We've decided to ban together and destroy this hated family," he said smoothly. Kyouya's eyes widened.

"You…" he hissed angrily. Arakaki laughed.

"Why are you so surprised? This family had it coming. You destroyed our happiness, we destroyed yours."

Kyouya stared at him, before his lips quirked in to a small, smug smile. "Those bastards had it coming too," he whispered.

Arakaki's smirk vanished as an angry growl went through the room. The supposed vet stepped back.

"Give him a little pain."

Immediately, his accomplices stepped forward and beat the small boy. Kyouya gave a cry as one man slammed his foot in to his arm. There was a snapping sound. His left arm lay there limply. Many blows rained down on him, forming bruises and welts.

"That's enough."

Arakaki smiled sweetly at Kyouya and knelt down in front of him again. "So sorry, Miyagi-kun, but you deserved that. You shouldn't insult the dead."

Kyouya glared at him, but he couldn't say anything. One man had kicked his throat, rendering him unable to talk.

"You should see our pain," Arakaki smiled again. This time it was much more sinister. "So I arranged a little something."

Kyouya weakly lifted his head and watched Arakaki moved out of the way. His parents were now concious and struggling against the ropes that tied them.

"Kyouya!" yelled his father as he kicked out at a man, who yelped and clutched his shin.

_Bang!_

Time stood still.

Kyouya watched, mouth agape, unable to hear the screamings of his mother and sister as his father, his invincible father, slowly fell backwards, blood pouring out from a hole in his forhead. Miyagi Deming, one of the greatest police officers of all time, slumped lifelessly to the ground and moved no more.

"F-Father…?" Kyouya managed to whisper, his throat smarting. Tears began to leak out of his eyes.

"Such a pity," Arakaki said softly. "That's how I felt when you killed my father Kyouya. Right in front of me."

Kyouya's eyes snapped up as they widened in recognition.

_This guy… This voice! He's the son of that doctor! The one who faked his liscense and operated on thousands, making them lose their lives! But…_

Arakaki smirked. "You are wondering how I look so different? I was only twenty at the time you killed him Kyouya, and you were about seven years old. After that, I researched hard to find out who you were, when I stumbled across the legend of the Tori family. I realized that it somehow fit beautifully in to your character. It was just a hunch, but it turned out I was right.

"I decided to take my revenge on you. I received plastic surgery and forged my complete identity. I actually had a doctor's liscense, only on animals, and decided to set up this shop near your house, hoping to befriend you. And imagine my surprise when you wandered right in to my shop, asking for a job!" Arakaki chuckled. "I never imagined that a murderer would love animals so much. But I went along with it. I hired you, learned about you, and your precious people. And," his eyes grew cold, "I plotted of how to take them away."

A shudder ran through Kyouya, this time being fear instead of anger. The hatred in Arakaki's eyes were great, and Kyouya could feel the hatred from the rest of the fourty men.

"All the men here, like I've said before, had fallen victim to your family. We found each other, and decided to come together to kill you."

_Kill…_ Kyouya shivered.

"Leave my son alone!" Michiru suddenly screamed. Arakaki raised his hand.

_BANG!!_

Kiki screamed as her mother slumped next to her father's corpse. A shot straight through Michiru's throat had eternally silenced her.

Kyouya started to feel dizzy.

"Such a loud family, I've always said…" Arakaki murmured. "Well, Miyagi-kun. Just sit there and watch your last family member die."

"Last…?" Kyouya croaked.

"Last," Arakaki affirmed. "We tried to bring Fon-kun with us, but he kept struggling, and it was troublesome. So we shot him in the chest and left him to die somewhere else."

Kyouya's eyes widened, before tears slowly began to pour down. His brother, his stupid annoying brother, but his brother nonetheless.

Kiki's eyes grew wide as Arakaki approached her and held the gun a foot away from her heart.

"Leave her alone!" Kyouya managed to shriek, making him feel like his throat had just been ripped in two.

"I don't think so," Arakaki's eyes started glowing from excitement. "Sayonara, Kiki-chan."

_BANG!_

Kyouya screamed.

Miraculously, Kiki stayed alive for a few more seconds, looking rather dazedly at her older brother.

"Onii-sama… win…" she whispered softly. "Don't… be weak…"

And then she was gone.

Tears slowly fell, one after another, before they slowly became a flood. Kyouya sobbed, his body shaking.

"Isn't it painful?" Arakaki smirked. "It's fine. You will follow them eventually. Unlike us who survived from you."

"No…" Kyouya whispered.

"What was that?"

"I won't follow," Kyouya whispered, his voice even quieter. "But…"

Kyouya looked up, his eyes boiling with pure hatred. "You will follow those I have killed instead. Follow them straight to **hell**," he hissed venomously with the last word.

"Oh?" Arakaki laughed mockingly. "And how will you do that, Miyagi Kyouya-kun?"

"Didn't I always say…?" Kyouya suddenly gave a frightening smile. "You can never cage a skylark."

Kyouya, for a split second, held up hands, one holding the handcuffs, before suddenly grabbing the nearest man and slit his throat with the edge of the cuff.

Another man snapped to his senses and raised his gun. Kyouya threw the handcuffs at him. The man ducked, and Kyouya used that split second to dash and ram his shoulder in to his leg, knocking him over. Grabbing the gun, Kyouya quickly shot the man in the head. He shot six more down in his frenzy before running out of bullets. He managed to dodge a hail of bullets before sprinting out in to the hallway, almost slipping on the blood of his second cousin as he went. He muttered a silent prayer under his breath.

Kyouya ducked in to the bathroom and nearly tripped over an oil canister.

"Oil…?" despite the situation, Kyouya sweat-dropped. "No way… they're planning the burn down the house like I did theirs…? My god, the copycats…"

"Find that brat!" howled a voice. Kyouya jumped and hid behind the door frame.

The door swung open. Luckily, Kyouya was small, and made himself smaller by sucking in his breath so that the door hid him without hitting him.

"While we're here, just spread the oil everywhere, since we're going to do it later anyways."

"Won't it dry?"

"It won't take that long to find one little live brat in this house of dead people. And besides, the sooner the better. I want to get out of here quicker!"

"I guess you're right…"

There was a shuffling noise and a splashing sound of oil hitting wood and tiles. The door was suddenly shut and Kyouya was suddenly left alone.

He gave a sigh of relief and stepped out and stretched. He had gotten stiff. He flinched as his left arm (_broken_, he remembered) gave a painful throb. He sighed and grabbed a first aid kit from under the sink, carefully wrapping his arm tightly to give it support.

Suddenly, the door opened again and a man quickly came in, unzipping his fly. "I'm sorry! I have to go now!" he yelled at the shut door before realizing that someone else was in there.

There was a long silence.

* * *

A few minutes later, a rather exasperated and embarassed Kyouya stomped out of the bathroom, with a dead man beaten to death with a plunger behind him. Kyouya had taken the man's gun with him and was ready to shoot the hell out of others to vent his current mood. Which was extremely pissed.

Wait.

_The tonfa_.

Kyouya literally slapped himself for not remembering them eariler. Of course! If he could find them, then his weapon problem would come to a close. He wondered where they were. Arakaki had probably taken them away when he got… ugh, he had to admit it, **captured**. They were probably still inside the dining room.

Kyouya quietly shifted through the halls. There was no one alive in sight. He wondered if they had gone to the other side of the house. The hallways were already covered in more oil, making Kyouya a bit nervous and try to move faster. He had to get out of that house, quickly! If they caught him, Kyouya could wave goodbye to his revenge.

He managed to get to the dining room unhindered. _Strange,_ he mused. _Where did they go?_

He did indeed find his tonfa, one under the table, the other dropped in front of the door. His left arm gave another painful throb as he picked them up. Kyouya gritted his teeth. Even if it killed – … uh, no, well, never mind.

Kyouya took them in both hands, gave it a few practice swings, and nodded his approval. These would really come in handy. Now if only he could get the hang of blocking bullets with these things…

He, now more calmly, walked around the house to find Arakaki and the rest, but his confusion grew. Just where were they? He couldn't find them anywhere.

His thoughts clicked back to the bathroom covered with oil. Could they be…?

He found the closest window and looked outside.

_Oh fuck_.

Sometimes, Kyouya hated it when he was right.

The remainder of the men, about thirty-three left, were pouring oil all over his house. Arakaki stood by, a lighter in his hand, ready to drop it.

Kyouya gave a hiss of fury and sprinted to the backdoor to outside. Those **bastards**! Kyouya had to get out before they started the fire, or else he'd burn along with the rest of the house.

Two men were on guard duty, unfortunetely (for them). Kyouya smashed in their skulls with his tonfa, muffling the noise with a piece of cloth torn off from one of his uncle's shirt.

Hiding in the bushes, he peered out between the leaves. It looked as if the whole house was already covered. Arakaki smirked.

"And so, it comes to a close," the vet whispered. He lit the lighter.

And dropped it in to the oil.

Almost immediately, flames sprung up all over the house.

Kyouya watched, in horror, as his birthplace went up in flames. The beautiful rose had become darkly sinister.

Something exploded in his chest.

He leapt out of the bushes and smashed his tonfa in to Arakaki's skull. Arakaki gaped for a moment, before falling face forwards, dangerously close to the flames.

Kyouya turned to the others, teeth bared, as he leapt in to the crowd with a loud cry.

Men were scattered left and right. Kyouya's arm gave another painful throb. He ignored it and continued to wreak havoc upon the ones who had killed his family. He felt a great rush of adreneline pump through his veins, suddenly loving the sound of metal on flesh, the feeling of the flesh collasping. It felt so good.

He worked his way through the crowd until he was the only one standing.

Even then, he didn't stop.

He slammed the tonfa in to the unmoving bodies over and over again. They didn't squirm or scream. For some reason, Kyouya was growing frustrated with the lack of life.

Then he realized that he himself wasn't moving either.

He tried to move his arm to swing again, but it wouldn't budge. It was as if it were paralyzed.

His whole body started to tremble, working slowly from his thighs, up to the chest, and spreading to his arms. He couldn't stop shaking.

He dropped the tonfa and collasped on to the ground.

Keeping his eyes barely open, he watched as his house burned away.

"_And then the boy falls asleep... The flames inside the breathing ashes... one, then two..._" Kyouya softly sang the lullaby that he had grown up with, with both his mother and his sister's sweet voices.

His eyes drifted shut and finally his tensed body went limp, among the corpses within the illuminated garden.

* * *

Yes, that lullaby is from _D. Gray_ _Man_. Another manga which I love like hell. I'm so freakin' MAD that they ended both that and the Eyeshield 21 anime early! ARRRRRGH!!!! *pant pant, cough, ahem* Seeing the lyrics, I thought they were the most appropriate. Here's the translation (not totally correct) of the whole song (romanji in bold, english in italics):

**Soshite bouyawa nemurini tsuite.  
Ikizuku haino nakono hono o.  
Hitotsu, futatsuto.  
Ukabu fukurami itoshii yokogao.  
Daichini taruru ikusenno yume, yume.  
Ginno hitomini yuragu yoruni.  
Umareochita kagayaku omae.  
Ikuo kunno tositsukiga.  
Ikutu inori wo tsuchihe kaeshite mo.  
Watashi wa inori tsuzukeru, mou kakonno kotoni ai wo.  
Tsunaidateni KISS wo.**

_And then the boy falls asleep.  
The flame inside the breathing ashes.  
__One, then two.  
The floating, sweeling, the dear profile.  
Thousands of dreams, dreams, that pour onto the earth.  
On the night when the silver eyes swing,  
The shining you was born.  
Millions of years.  
No matter now many millions of years, return the prayers to earth.  
I continue praying, love the the last.  
Kiss for the joined hands._

If you want to hear the song, remove spaces from address below. Song starts at 0:23

http : // www . youtube . com / watch?v = PwzHzs1tfz0&feature = related

Reviews are appreciated! And go read _Karneval_ please!


	12. Skylark Arc VIII: Erase My Fears

Omigod, you won't believe this XD.

And for those who already know, shut up.

It turns out that there's another motive for why Hibari's name is Hibari. It's not because it means "skylark".

This is the kanji for his name -- 雲雀

Almost everyone knows that the second kanji means 'sparrow', as pointed out by Joushima Ken.

But did anyone know what the first kanji means? It means... 'CLOUD'!!!

No wonder he's the Cloud Guardian! Haha!

Oh, and for the record, this is the kanji for Mukuro's name -- 骸

This is a tad disturbing. It can be read as 'bone, body, or corpse'

Well, that's Mukuro for you.

**Title:**_ Memories Never Fade  
_**Chapter:**_ Skylark Arc Part VIII: Erase My Fears  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Action/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!! And there will be more!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_Four_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _Pain pain and more pain. Will Kyouya ever be able to be happy again? Will he even want to be? Maybe Ran can help._

* * *

_Where am I…_

**_Kyouya was conscious, but he didn't dare to open his eyes. What would he see?_**

**_His family?_**

**_Arakaki?_**

**_Or perhaps darkness._**

**_Deciding it was better to take a look rather than wonder about it, Kyouya opened his eyes to see himself staring up at a white ceiling._**

_… When did I get indoors? _

**_He sat up, then winced. He realized that his arm had been bandaged and put in to a sling._**

**_So I'm alive… He contemplated silently, absentmindedly staring down at his blankets._**

**_Then…_**

_Damn._

**_Kyouya laid back down and flung the covers over his head, blocking out the world._**

* * *

**_"… and so, you won't be able to move around for a while," the doctor said gently to him. "I'm sorry, Kyouya-kun, but you aren't allowed to leave the hospital."_**

**_"…" Kyouya didn't reply at all, just stared blankly outside the window. The doctor had misinterpreted this as a longing to go outside. _**

**_"Please make yourself comfortable," the doctor said, standing up to leave. "I hope you'll enjoy your stay here."_**

**_He left, softly shutting the door. Kyouya sat there, silent and unmoving, as he watched the birds fly freely by his window._**

* * *

**_"Quickly, hold him down!"_**

**_"Kyouya-kun! Please stop!"_**

**_Hands grabbed him and forced him back on the bed, making him drop the knife. He felt a restrainer tie around his good wrist and he was tied to the bars of the bed. He struggled halfheartedly, then relaxed back with a quiet sigh._**

**_The doctor and two nurses were hastily tending to the large slit on his wrist, putting pressure on it to stop the bleeding._**

**_"Kyouya-kun, why on earth would you do such a foolish thing?!" exclaimed the doctor. "You're lucky that we came in time! This could have been fatal!"_**

**_"…"_**

**_"Kyouya-kun! Please answer me!"_**

**_"… Family…" Kyouya whispered._**

**_The nurses and the doctor tensed. Kyouya was staring at the ceiling, his eyes glazed._**

**_"I want to see my family…"_**

**_The doctor's expression turned mournful. "I'm sorry, Kyouya-kun," he said, a little more gently. "We can't let you do that."_**

**_Kyouya turned his head, looking rather considering. "Why?"_**

**_"Because I am a doctor."_**

**_"…" Kyouya turned away. "I almost got killed by a doctor…"_**

**_The three others all sighed. "We're sorry," one of the nurses said._**

**_Knock knock knock._**

**_"Who is it?" called the doctor."_**

**_The door opened, and who should walk in but Ran. "Excuse me, I am Chi Amaya…" _**

**_"Ah, aren't you the girl who brought Kyouya-kun in?"_**

**_"Yes… could I speak with him in private?"_**

**_"Yes, but please don't let him near sharp objects."_**

**_"… Does this have something to do with why he's in bondage?"_**

* * *

**_"I guess I said the wrong thing there…" Ran remarked, as she watched the flustered doctor and nurses hurry out of the room._**

**_Kyouya didn't say anything. He didn't even seem to notice that she was there._**

**_Ran gave a little sigh. She had expected this. Kyouya was going to be unresponsive for a while._**

**_"I'm really surprised," she said, a little loudly to gain his attention. "I didn't think that you'd be able to kill all of them. I went around to check and there wasn't a single survivor in that whole bunch. You weren't the least bit affected that your whole family got killed in front of you?"_**

**_She finished speaking and held her breath. Would Kyouya get angry like he usually would? At least a little emotion would show that he was okay, and would heal._**

**_Surprisingly, instead of blowing up at her insensitivity, Kyouya gave her a tired smile that made her heart ache._**

**_"It's a family thing…" Kyouya said quietly. "As assassins, we are meant to harden our hearts and kill in cold blood. We do not weep, and we do not care about our victims. If a comrade dies, we do not pay attention to it. We simply need to fulfill our goals and be done with it."_**

**_Ran blinked. So that was why?_**

**_"But…"_**

**_Ran blinked again as she saw tears slowly falling down Kyouya's beautiful face. Kyouya gave her a teary smile._**

**_"When everything is done… we are just as human as the rest of the world," he whispered, and then began to cry, muffling his sobs in his hands._**

**_Ran's eyes softened and reached over, gently embracing him and rubbing his back comfortingly. This was probably the closest that she had ever gotten to him, as close as he would ever let her._**

**_And yet, would there be any chances in the future?_**

* * *

**_Ran came to visit Kyouya everyday, no matter what. Even when there was once a bad hurricane, Ran had appeared at his door and kept him company from the winds. Kyouya began to talk to her a little more, telling Ran about his childhood and what it was like to be raised to kill at such a young age. Whenever the mention of Kiki or Fon came up, however, he'd clam up and refuse to talk anymore. To keep his mind of it, Ran would mention Nagi, and Kyouya's eyes would light up softly. It was clear that he wanted to see her. Ran was working on that._**

**_"You're feeling more cheery," Ran commented one day. "Any better?"_**

**_Kyouya paused in eating his apple wedge and gave an uncertain nod. "Yeah, a little better."_**

**_"The doctors are commenting on your improvement too. It is really surprising that your arm healed already."_**

**_Kyouya waved around his left arm a little before shrugging. "I guess it all really has to do with will power to live."_**

**_Ran chuckled slightly before reaching over to cut a peach. "At least they're giving you knives again. It must have been tough to eat without it."_**

**_Kyouya picked up another apple wedge and popped it in to his mouth, chewing thoughtfully. It was a peaceful spring day. Warm and with a cool breeze. Lovely._**

**_"Excuse me…" a nurse opened the door. "Visiting hours are over."_**

**_"Right," Ran stood up and gave Kyouya a kiss on the forehead. It had become a routine after the first visit. "See you tomorrow. Oh, I might be a little late though. I have to go somewhere."_**

**_"Where?" _**

**_"Just a place," Ran waved her hand vaguely, before turning on her heels and leaving. "Ja ne!"_**

**_"… Bye," Kyouya muttered to the empty room. Admittedly, Kyouya always felt rather lonely when she left. He had grown more used to her company. And enjoyed having it._**

**_Perhaps he was learning to open up after all._**

* * *

**_Kyouya gazed absentmindedly out the window again, watching a pair of robins build a nest outside his window. The robins reminded him of his mother. A lump came to his throat._**

**_The door swung open. Kyouya turned, expecting to see Ran, and ask why she had come at her usual time instead of late like she had said yesterday._**

**_He least expected to see a person that he had killed stand in front of him again._**

**_"… Miyagi-kun," that man, Arakaki smirked and pointed that damned gun at him again._**

**_Arakaki was not in good shape. His right arm was held at a crooked angle. His left was barely managing to hold a gun. His face and the rest of his skin was covered with either burns or bandages. Kyouya could only recognize him by the hatred in his eyes._**

**_"Are you ready to die this time?"_**

**_Kyouya had completely froze. Inside, his heart did the opposite and began to thump loudly. It echoed in his ears._**

_Thump thump thump._

_Shut up._

_Thump thump thump!_

_Shut up!_

_THUMP THUMP THUMP!!_

_SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP!!_

**_Kyouya mentally screamed at his heart and hated himself for the fear that coursed through him. Arakaki slowly approached him, his hand trembling. He had to move closer, or else we wouldn't be able to aim right._**

**_Kyouya, forgetting that he was more healthy and could move easily, simply sat there, cowering. Arakaki's eyes were aglow, filled with thoughts of revenge._**

**_"You got me the last time," Arakaki's voice came out rather raspy. A small part of Kyouya's mind noted that his throat was probably also burned. "But I'm not going to go easy on you."_**

_I'm scared!_

**_"You were sure that you got rid of me, weren't you? But I won't die so easily."_**

_Someone… anyone…_

**_"Time for you to go."_**

_Help me!_

**_Kyouya's eyes started to water. Arakaki smirked again and pointed the gun at the younger boy's forehead. "That cute puppy look won't work on me. Good-bye – urk!"_**

**_There was a sudden stop in time as blood flowed down in a trickle in Arakaki's mouth. He turned around slowly, painfully, to see who had just shot him in the back._**

**_Ran stood there, a simple derringer in her hand. With a cold smile._**

**_"Good day, Arakaki-sensei," she said, politely. "Sorry about being late Kyou-chan, I had to go to a weapon dealer's."_**

**_"How did you…" hissed out Arakaki before beginning to cough up more blood._**

**_"Know that you were coming?" Ran shrugged. "You shouldn't underestimate me just because I appear young. I'm approximately 358 years older than you are, idiot."_**

**_(Author's Note: I finally bothered to caculate and determined that around this time, Ran is actually about 380 years old. Sorry for not bothering earlier.)_**

**_Arakaki's eyes widened, and so did Kyouya's. Neither of them knew whether or not to believe her. Ran rolled her eyes._**

**_"Not that you'd believe me, since I look like this. But anyways…"_**

**_Ran sighed and dropped the gun. "Oh jeez, this is so pointless. You're too stubborn to die. Never thought I'd see a person like you in this age. I've run in to a couple like you a century back. There was really only a few ways to get rid of people like you."_**

**_Arakaki's eyes widened. Ran held up her hand calmly and it began to glow._**

**_The glow, instead of making everything look brighter, began to make everything look darker and darker. Kyouya felt a shudder go down his spine._**

_What is this? This horrible feeling…_

**_Arakaki was feeling the same thing. He backed away slowly, gun forgotten. Ran approached him, her hand now illuminated with black flames. Night flames._**

**_"W-What ARE you?!" Arakaki snarled, trying to be as intimidating as possible. Even Kyouya thought that this attempt was incredibly weak._**

**_Ran smiled coolly and then held out her hand._**

**_The flames snaked out and engulfed Arakaki in a burning blaze._**

**_Kyouya, by this time, was too terrified to do anything. Arakaki fell to the ground, trying to beat the flames off, but to no avail._**

**_"W-What the hell!?" he gasped, as he suddenly was unable to move any part of his body. "What the hell is this!?"_**

**_"Night flames," Ran said quietly. "They can erase anything they touch, you know."_**

**_"There isn't any point to this!" screamed Arakaki. "Somebody will walk in here soon. Visiting hours are almost over! Somebody will come in here!"_**

**_"Really?" Ran's smile was mysterious and cold. "That's quite unfortunate. Nobody will remember to come check this room though, I've made sure of it."_**

**_"T-There will be people looking for me! They'll find you!" screamed Arakaki._**

**_"No they won't. Didn't I tell you? These flames can erase anything," Ran's smile slowly grew wider. "That even means somebody's complete existence. Anyone that knew you, anyone that realized that you existed… will forget about you the moment you turn in to nothing."_**

**_"No way!" Arakaki stared in horror down at his body, which, instead of burning, was actually disappearing completely. His legs were no longer there; they had somehow disintigrated in to thin air. "This can't be!"_**

**_"But it can!" Ran was having too much fun. "That means that your soul will be gone too. You won't go to heaven or hell. You were never there. There was never such a person as you. Except for the ones who have seen you burn away, no one will remember you."_**

**_Ran tilted her head back and leaned against the shut door, laughing carelessly. "Being able to erase a person on will, making anything they wish disappear, being to create whatever they wish… Night users are on the same par as gods!"_**

**_Arakaki couldn't say anything; his mouth had disappeared._**

**_Only the top half of his head was there…_**

**_And then his forehead disappeared, leaving only his terrified eyes…_**

**_And then…_**

**_Nothing._**

**_Kyouya stared at that spot where the person known as Arakaki had last stood. He was gone. Completely gone. _**

**_He shakily got out of bed and walked to that spot, bending down and touching it with his fingertips._**

**_Nothing was THERE._**

**_Kyouya sat down and just stared at that spot, wondering. Ran smiled and sat down next to him. _**

**_Kyouya looked at her dazedly, and then crawled in to her lap. Ran, surprised at this gesture at first, smiled and embraced him tightly. _**

**_"I'm sorry you had to see that, but you'll be okay now," Ran said softly, kissing him on the forehead as usual and stroking his hair._**

**_Kyouya looked up at her wonderingly, before snuggling deeper in to her hug._**

**_"You said…"_**

**_"Hm? What was that?" Ran pulled away and little and beamed down at him._**

**_"You said… that you could erase anything…"_**

**_"Yes, I can!" Ran said cheerily. "Don't worry though, I won't erase you. I haven't been so fond of a human for so long now. You are a rarity."_**

**_"Can you… erase them?"_**

**_"Erase what, honey?" Ran asked innocently._**

**_"Erase them…" Kyouya lifted his head to reveal that he was crying. "Erase my memories!"_**

**_"What?" Ran wasn't quite sure if she had heard right._**

**_"Erase all of them! Erase everything!" Kyouya buried his face in to her neck. Ran could feel his tears on her skin._**

**_"Kyou-chan…" Ran pulled away and held him at arm's length. "Do you realize what you are asking me to do?"_**

**_Kyouya nodded. "I… don't want to be afraid anymore," he whispered. "But… I am! I'm afraid of everything now! I don't like being scared!" he sobbed. "I… can't think of anything else…"_**

**_Ran looked at him, sadly. "Kyou-chan," she said gently. "Erasing memories is a little different from erasing anything else."_**

**_"YOU'VE done it! To my mother and Ayu!" Kyouya choked on the words._**

**_"No I haven't," Ran shook her head. "I erased my presence of self. Anything about me they did not notice. They may talk to me, they may see me, but that has no significance. I'm there, but to them, I'm really not."_**

**_The look on Kyouya's face told him that he did not understand a thing that she had just said._**

**_Ran sighed. "And anyways," she continued gently, "erasing memories are dangerous. I might completely erase your sense of self. And because Night flames are inside your body, which you are not accustomed to…" Ran paused. "The Night flames will consume your lifespan."_**

**_Kyouya tilted his head, making such a childlike gesture that Ran's heart began to ache again._**

**_"They are indifferent and absorbing, taking in everything. It is a greedy flame, that even I may not have total control over," she glanced down at her hands. "I am born with them, so it doesn't affect me, but you, having no experience with these, will be absorbed by them. Am I making sense?"_**

**_Kyouya nodded, again more childish._**

**_"Even so, do you still want this?"_**

**_Kyouya nodded again._**

**_Ran gave a quiet sigh and reached out, gently touching the boy's forehead with her fingertips. Almost immediately, his eyes slid unfocusedly shut. A soft black flame lit on his forehead, making a seal. Kyouya slumped to the ground, unconscious._**

**_Ran sighed and talked to the unknowing body. "Memories are difficult to erase. It takes a total of three years to really get rid of them. You're going to have to wait a while."_**

**_She picked him up and rested him on her back, before going over to open a window. It was the third floor, but that was no problem. She jumped down with no hesitation._**

**_Ran paused, and then erased Kyouya's presence. Nobody would remember him or her. None at all._**

**_"Shall we go then?" she smiled at the sleeping boy and walked away, planning to grab tickets to a certain place._**

**_A certain place that will be more peaceful and easier to live in._**

* * *

10-years-old Kyouya woke up.

He sat up sleepily and gazed around dazedly.

_Where am I?_

_… Oh right, I'm in my room._

He stretched and yawned. _What a weird dream…_

He slipped out of his bed and shivered as his feet touched the hardwood floor of his apartment. Absentmindedly berating himself for showing a weakness, he opened the door and trotted out in to the hall, down towards the kitchen. He was surprised to see someone already there.

"Good morning!" said the person.

"Good morning!" Kyouya replied cheerily. "Amaya-neechan!"

Amaya smiled at him and flipped over the pancakes that she was making. "You're in a good mood. Did something happen?"

"How can anything happen this early in the morning?" Kyouya yawned again. "I had a really weird dream though."

"Weird how?" Amaya asked.

"Dunno," Kyouya shrugged. "I've already forgotten it though."

"Silly. Then how do you know it was weird?" Amaya set down juice on the table. "Breakfast is ready."

"Okay!"

Kyouya sat down at the table and hummed. His older sister by three years put down a bowl of fruit. Kyouya immediately chose an apple, his favorite.

He had lived with his sister for exactly that; three years. Three years ago, his parents had passed away from a car accident. Kyouya remembered it well; he and his sister alone in their apartment, Amaya getting a call and his sister's horrified face. Then rushing to the hospital, being told that he couldn't see his parents anymore, the crushing realization, and then the funeral. Everyone dressed in black. Himself crying.

Kyouya had been young back then, and had refused to talk to anyone for a long time. But with Amaya's coaxing, he had slowly emerged from his shell and was back to communicating with the world. They had both stayed in the same apartment, refusing to leave. The landowner had been very reluctant at first, but then giving them the apartment was the lesser of the two evils; after Amaya had had a very violent and threatening talk with him (was what Kyouya believed).

"Did you pray?"

"Ah! I almost forgot!"

Kyouya quickly ran in to his late parents' room, where a small shrine had been set up. Kyouya lit an incense and prayed to his parent's portraits. His father had been a kind man, and a freelance writer. His mother ran the family garden shop/café (inherited from HER parents) that sold flowers, pots, gardening tools, lawn ornaments, and even (for some odd reason) birds. The café had been really popular itself. That was mostly due to the fact Amaya was a good cook. They had been an ordinary family.

Kyouya paused and looked at the calender. It was spring, right before school was about to start. Not that Kyouya went to school. Amaya was a child genius, and she taught him at home. Kyouya was able to solve math problems that university students had troubles with, and could read kanji, hiragana, katakana, Chinese characters, and English (his father had been a part Chinese, while his mother was an English major). Even his physical skills were above ordinary because his sister was a child genius in pretty much everything. He had learned a lot from her.

Kyouya finished praying and ran out back to the kitchen. His sister wasn't there.

"Amaya-nee?" he called.

"Out here!" called a voice from the balcony. "Come over here, this breeze feels great!"

Kyouya stepped out on the the wooden floored balcony and leaned over the railing, which was just a little shorter than he was. There were flowers everywhere, especially orchids. Well, they did run a garden shop after all. Kyouya liked the scent of their homegrown mint best (to quote Amaya, 'growing our own food saves money!').

The breeze ruffled his hair and it indeed felt wonderful. So was the view of the beautiful town beneath them.

"Isn't this a really nice place to live?" Ran smiled down at him, the sun shining on her beautiful face. "Namimori!"

"Yeah…" Kyouya smiled and rested his head in his arms, the wind caressing his face. "It's really wonderful…"

_For some reason… today…_

_That name Namimori feels so nostalgic…_

_But I wonder why?_

"I'm going to go get flowers for Otou-san and Okaa-san's graves," Kyouya called running out.

"You realize that we run a flower shop?"

"They like them better when they're fresh picked!"

Amaya laughed. "Alright! Hurry back! I can't handle the breakfast rush by myself!"

"I will!"

Kyouya sprinted down the staircases, too impatient to take the elevator, and didn't stop running until he reached the Namimori forest, close to the shrine.

He didn't notice Amaya watching him from above, a mysterious smile on her face.

He found his favorite medow – the one that his family used to go to for picnics – and plucked the best flowers that he could find. Ones that weren't completely in full bloom and healthy and strong.

He ran to his parents' grave. Upon requests (both his parents weren't too fond of crowds, which was why they lived in a more surburban area), they were buried behind Namimori Shrine. It was a very peaceful place. Which was what his parents liked the best.

"Otou-san, Okaa-san, I'm working hard," he smiled at the graves, deeply engraved with his parents' names. "You don't have to worry about me. I won't get hurt anymore!"

_Huh? _Kyouya suddenly blinked. _Where did that last part come from?_

_… Oh yeah, I was bullied a lot in elementary school. That's why I stopped going. I wonder how I forgot that so easily?_

Kyouya shrugged and got up. "I'm going to help Amaya-nee now. I'll see you again!"

He ran off again and in no time, was back in to the town. He accidentally crashed in to another boy, a little younger than he himself was.

"Oh my!" the woman's mother hurried over and checked on the both of them. "Are you alright? Tsu-kun, say that you're sorry!"

"It's my fault, ma'am," Kyouya replied politely and dusted himself off before offering a hand to the younger boy. "Are you okay?"

The boy named Tsu-kun sniffled and nodded, rubbing his rear. Tsu-kun took his hand and stood up before clinging to his mother's skirts.

"I'm very sorry," she bowed. "Um… er…"

"Oh, my name is…" Kyouya began before pausing.

"Yes?"

"M-My name is…"

_I can't remember… my name?_

"Is something the matter?" the mother looked worried at Kyouya's tense face. Tsu-kun peeked at Kyouya curiously.

_What is it? My name is… Oh!_

"Hibari!" Kyouya smiled. "Hibari Kyouya!"

"Ahh, I see! Nice to meet you, Hibari-san!" Tsu-kun's mother bowed and nodded. "If you ever feel like playing with someone, you can come too our house anytime!"

"Really? Thank you!" Kyouya smiled before suddenly frowning.

"Oh no! I'm late!" he cried and ran off, yelling. "Bye, Oba-san! Bye Tsu-kun!"

"Good-bye!" Tsu-kun's mother waved.

"Kaa-san," Tsu-kun looked up, big brown eyes open wide. "Why did you invite a stranger over?"

"Because Tsu-kun needs more friends," his mother, Sawada Nana, told him sternly. "And she looked like such a nice girl!"

"… Kaa-san, I think that person was a boy."

"Oh! Oh… so that's why his name was like that…"

* * *

Kyouya sprinted. If he was ten minutes late, his sister would kill him, no joke!

"TAKESHI!!" roared a sudden voice. Kyouya paused and turned towards the Takesushi store, probably the best sushi store in Namimori.

"What are you DOING?! You could've killed yourself waving that knife around! Put it DOWN!!"

"Ah, c'mon Oyaji, I want to learn how to make sushi too!"

Kyouya chuckled slightly as she watched the irate father pull a laughing Takeshi outside of the store and force him in to a dogeza position. "Now SIT out here! And don't you dare move!"

Takeshi complied cheerily and waited till his father was gone before slouching down and yawning lazily, before catching Kyouya's eyes.

"Morning!" Takeshi smiled.

"Hello," Kyouya smirked. "Your dad will skin you alive if he sees you now."

"Ah, it's okay, you can tell when he's coming!" Takeshi said cheerfully. "Don't worry about it, little miss."

A temple pulsed in Kyouya's forehead.

"YOU MORON!!!"

"What's all the noise out here?!" barked Takeshi's father as he stuck his head out the door in time to see Kyouya slap Takeshi hard across the face.

"You idiot!" shrieked Kyouya, his voice unintentionally going higher than usual. "Oji-san, your son is an idiot!"

"What did you do Takeshi?!" barked his father.

"Er, kinda offended her… I guess…? Ahahaha…"

Takeshi's father got the wrong idea as usual.

"You did WHAT?! I know that you're growing, Takeshi, but you can't just violate girls like that! I'm sorry, little miss, would you like some free sushi…"

_WHAM!!!_

Kyouya had grabbed a conveniently placed broom and swung hard, cracking Takeshi's father across the chin.

"Oyaji!" yelped Takeshi and scrambled over to check on him. "Nice swing, by the way. Do you play baseball?"

"… You're both idiots!" scowled Kyouya.

"… Not bad!" Takeshi's father sat up. "I like you, little miss! How would you like to marry Takeshi and inherit the restaurant with him? The Yamamotos' need a tough lady like you!"

_CRACK!!! POW!!!_

Kyouya dusted off his hands and scowled. The idiot duo were both flat on their backs, nursing bleeding noses.

Yamamoto Tsuyoshi turned to his son, Yamamoto Takeshi, and grinned. "Now that's a woman! Real fiery and hot!"

"Whatever you say, Oyaji," Takeshi grinned and then winced. That 'girl' had made a very large hand-shaped bruise on his face.

* * *

Kyouya stormed past an electronic appliance store ("No, Shou-chan, you can't have a new laptop." "But MOOOM…") and back to his family's café.

"KYOU-CHAN!!! WHERE WERE YOU?!" demanded Amaya angrily as she juggled coffee, hot chocolate, and three separate danish specials. "Arrgh, this isn't the time! Just go change and start taking orders!"

"Right," Kyouya hurried to the back to change in to his waiter's outfit.

He paused and stared out the window.

_It's weird. I've been up and down this street so many times, and yet…_

_Why do I not know anyone here?_

"HIBARI KYOUYA, GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE!!" came a scream.

"I'm coming!"

* * *

If Kyouya had looked closer, he may have noticed that his family's apartments were too extravagant for a writer and family business to really afford…

If he had looked closer, he may have noticed that the café and shop were newly built…

If had looked closer, he may have noticed that the graves were not graves at all, simply slabs of rocks arranged to look like them…

If he had looked closer, he may have noticed that he and his 'sister' did not look anything alike…

But how could he?

Ran looked in at Kyouya, who was sleeping soundly in his bed. She smiled softly before going in to the main bedroom and looking at the shrine.

"Michiru-san, Deming-san, Kiki-chan, Ayu-san," she smiled and passed her hands over the photos, which suddenly changed. Instead of two completely unrelated people, the pictures now showed the Miyagi family. In the photo of the fake mother, there was now Michiru together with Deming, and in the fake father's photo, there was Ayu holding a laughing Kiki. "Kyou-chan has finally woken up after being asleep for a year. Don't worry about your son. I'll take good care of him, for as long as I possibly can."

Ran's arm twitched and she grimanced. "I'd better hold out for as long as I can too. I'm already well over my limit."

Ran got up and went back to her own bedroom, sitting on the bed and looking out the window at the town.

"Being able to erase memories and create memories… Are Night users really the same as gods?" she whispered to herself. "Will we ever know?"

She laid back down and was about to drift off, before she suddenly sat up and screamed. "OMIGOD I FORGOT!!!"

Kyouya snapped out of his sleep and sprinted to Ran's room. "Amaya-nee! Are you alright!?"

"I-I'm fine," she said sheepishly. "I was just dreaming about forgetting an order…"

"Mou, Onee-chan, you're such a workaholic!" scolded Kyouya. "You had me worried!"

"Ye-Yeah, sorry! Good night!"

"Jeez…" Kyouya turned off the light and shut the door.

Ran made a 'oops, I did it again' face.

_During that last visit to the hospital a year ago…_

_I forgot to tell him that his brother is still alive._

"Oh crap," she sighed. "Well, nothing that I can do now."

And then she promptly laid on her side and went to sleep.

* * *

Oh Ran, you silly XP

Were any of you confused as you read this chapter? I bet some of you were, admit it!

Reviews are lovely!


	13. Skylark Arc VIIII: Ten Years Time

GAAAH!!! The end of summer is coming too fast! *cries*

Anyways, thanks to the people who read and review my other two stories, _I'm Male, I'm Gay, I'm An OC_ and _Protecting You_.

I swear, this chapter caused me a lot of grief, because it's hard to write anything in the future without giving somethings away. I WANTED to give some stuff away, but in a more subtle fashion. Crap.

Ehehe, but I'm also happy. There are guest appearances of others!

Keep in mind that most of this is from Kyouya's view, so for the most part, Ran is referred to as 'Amaya' in here.

**Title:**_ Memories Never Fade  
_**Chapter:**_ Skylark Arc Part VIIII: Ten Years Time  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Action/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!! And there will be more!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_Four_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _His 'sister' WARNED him not to touch that bazooka, didn't she? Why oh why did Kyouya never listen? 1896 and slight 1827 if you squint._

* * *

Kyouya wasn't entirely sure what had just happened. He was currently sitting inside a castle, with six people staring at him, and he was soaking wet.

Let's review, shall we?

* * *

As well as running a family café and gardening shop, His 'sister' Amaya also made inventions. Several were completely odd, among them being a bat that could turn in to a sword, and some were very interesting, such as a large purple bazooka.

The bazooka was his main point of interest because Amaya had completely forbidden him to touch it. He was very curious about it, however, especially when one day she came out of her workshop (that had been making suspicious noises all afternoon) with another bazooka, this one red in color.

When questioned, Amaya had simply shook her head, saying that she was working with other people to invent them (she didn't say who), and that these were her personal prototypes. Kyouya's curiosity had been even more intrigued when she had told him that it had abilities beyond the ordinary, and could send a person flying fifteen years in to the future.

Kyouya had heard (and used) the saying 'if you don't shut up, I'll knock you in to next week', but was this bazooka really that powerful?

Not that he realized that this had anything to do with time travel.

But then the assembly line of bazookas and colors started growing. Once in a while, Amaya would take one bazooka and replace it with another. The only one that she never touched again was the purple one, and Kyouya's curiosity finally got the better of him one day.

"I'm going out," Amaya announced on that one day.

"Where to?"

"To a place. I need to get all those properly tested," she pointed to the line of bazookas.

"Oh," Kyouya felt disappointed. He thought that now he could examine them without Amaya hovering over his shoulder. But they would be going with her.

The next day, Amaya had stored them in some sort of bag (which seemed to either be larger on the inside than the outside, or had a black hole in the bottom) and was about to walk out when Kyouya tugged on her shirt.

"You forgot that one," he pointed to the purple one, coughing slightly.

"Oh, no, I don't need to bring that one with me. I got approval for it already," Amaya answered. "Just don't knock it over or something when I'm gone. It's very fragile and the slightest shock can send all the wiring and devices in it in to a frenzy. Think of it like a mercury switch on a bomb. I'll be back tonight."

With that, she was gone, leaving a very inquisitive Kyouya and something to investigate alone.

The moment she was gone, Kyouya went up to the bazooka and touched in gingerly. It seemed to be perfectly safe. He sniffled. He had been feeling a little light headed lately.

Getting bold, he tried to pick it up. However, it was a lot lighter than he expected and with too much strength, he heaved it up in to the air, overbalanced, and dropped it

(Author's Note: Anybody ever had something like this happen to you? I have. When I was twelve, I needed to move a table, which seemed really heavy, but then it turned out to be really light. I put too much strength in to it, and I thought that I would barely be able to lift it, but then the whole thing just flew over my head and broke on the floor and my mommy got mad at me T_T)

The next thing Kyouya knew, there was a loud boom and his vision was obscured with bright cotton candy pink smoke. He coughed and waved it away. When he did, a very large surprise was waiting for him.

Instead of being inside his own, familiar apartment, he was somewhere outside, apparently sitting by the side of a fountain, when he heard a loud cry of surprise right in his ear.

"HIIII?!?!"

Kyouya clapped a hand over his ears and fell back in to the fountain by accident. Coughing and wet, He turned to glare at the person, and was even more surprised when he saw who it was.

"Tsu-kun?" he asked confusedly, seeing the boy that he had met almost a week ago.

"HIIIIIIII?!!?" screeched Tsu-kun, even more loudly.

WAS this Tsu-kun? He was a lot bigger, and his hair was now slightly past his shoulders. He was pretty feminine, much more so than when Kyouya had last seen him, and was wearing an expression of utmost horror.

"Kyouya!?" Tsu-kun exclaimed in bewilderment as the said boy clambered out of the water. "You, what… that damned bazooka!"

Kyouya jumped guiltily. "I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about."

Tsu-kun swore and grabbed Kyouya, ignoring his cry of surprise, before heading for a full sprint down the street of… wherever. This sure wasn't Namimori. It looked a lot more… fancy, to say the least.

Kyouya felt a shadow loom over him and he looked up to see one of the biggest houses (more of a castle, really) that he had ever seen. And Tsu-kun sprinted right inside, Kyouya still thrown over his shoulder.

"GUYS!!!" he yelled at the top of his voice. "WE HAVE A PROBLEM!!"

Immediately, there were thumps and bangs as doors opened and shut. Tsu-kun had gone in to a sitting room of some sort and put Kyouya down. "Sorry about that," he panted. More people entered the room.

Kyouya was just utterly confused.

And that was where we left off.

* * *

"So this is the ten year younger Hibari?"

"It looks like it, but he's really different from what I thought he would be…"

"B-But are your sure that this is really Kyouya-san, Boss?"

"He appeared in the same place where his future self was, this HAS to be him. Lambo!"

"This isn't MY fault! I wasn't even born ten years ago!"

"EXTREME!!!"

"Uh…" Kyouya spoke up. "Tsu-kun? Takeshi?"

Both paused and looked at him in bewilderment.

"Er," Kyouya wasn't sure what to say, before blurting out all his questions. "… Where are we, who are the rest of these guys, and why the hell are you guys suddenly bigger than me?"

"… You know us?" Takeshi asked.

"I met you almost a week ago," Kyouya frowned. "But you weren't this big…"

"Are you sure?"

"You were outside of Takesushi, your dad forced you to sit in a dogeza position outside of the store, you called me a girl," Kyouya deadpanned.

"Oh, uh…" Takeshi scratched his head, frowning. "Sorry?"

"You called him a GIRL, baseball freak?"

"I can't remember… but he does look like a girl right now, doesn't he?"

Kyouya grabbed a nearby book and flung it at him. It hit Takeshi with a satisfying thunk in the face.

"Ouch!"

"Yep, that's definitely Hibari TO THE EXTREME!!"

"I am NOT a girl," Kyouya crossed his arms and pouted. The adults and the kid – Lambo – looked surprised.

"Wow, Hibari POUTS?"

"What about me?" asked Tsu-kun.

"I crashed in to you on the same day this idiot called me a girl," he pointed at Takeshi accusingly, making the other laugh sheepishly. "Your mom invited me over your house, but I had to leave, so I couldn't."

"Kaa-san invited you TO OUR HOUSE?! Why don't I remember this!?"

"It was only last week," Kyouya rolled his eyes and slumped back on the pillows. "Short term memory loss much?"

"How DARE you talk to Juudaime like that!"

"Hayato!"

"Kyouya-san…" the only girl in the room, about eighteen, smiled slightly, giggling. The smile made something click in Kyouya's memory.

"… Nagi?" he wondered where that word came from.

"Eh?"

"You know him too?! Chrome."

"I… I don't think so…"

"Sorry, I thought you were, uh, someone else," Kyouya quickly covered up. "You still haven't answered my questions though. So where is this?"

"Uh…" Tsu-kun looked uncomfortable. "This is… ten years in to the future."

"What?" Kyouya asked in disbelief.

"Uh… D-Did you have contact with a big purple bazooka or something before you came here?"

Kyouya gave another guilty jump and tried to look innocent. "W-What bazooka?"

"Don't lie, you brat!" growled a silver-haired man who called Tsu-kun 'Juudaime' ('Hayato', Kyouya thought). He would have been handsome, had it been not for that scowl. "It's written all over your face!"

Kyouya fidgeted nervously. "Uh, well, that's… m-my sister…"

"You have a sister?"

Kyouya looked up. Lambo, Takashi, Hayato, and… Chrome (Nagi?) were all looking at him in surprise. Only Tsu-kun didn't look surprised at all. On the contrary, his eyes narrowed a little crease in between his eyes.

"Y-Yeah, Amaya-nee," Kyouya nodded slightly, hesitating before going on. "I-It was one of her inventions. She went somewhere with a whole bunch of them…"

"A whole bunch of Ten-Year Bazookas?!" Hayato asked in bewilderment.

"Uh, not exactly…"

"Well then what?! Spit it out!"

"…"

"Hayato, I don't think he'll say anything if you ask him like that…"

"S-Sorry, Juudaime…"

"Kyouya, what do you mean?"

"Onee-chan likes to invent really weird stuff… She said that she worked with other people to make those bazookas. She said that one of them would transport to you a different dimension, and another one would take you fifteen years in to the future… something like that."

Everyone stared at him before staring at each other. Then they all huddled together and started whispering. Well, more like everyone seemed to be interrogating Lambo.

"Lambo, did the Bovino family really make stuff like that?"

"I heard that they were making more, but the Ten-Year Bazooka was the only one that really worked properly…"

"Hmm… wait; hasn't it been more than five minutes since Hibari's gotten here?"

"YOU MEAN HE'S STUCK IN THIS TIME PERIOD TO THE EXTREME!?!?"

"Lawn-Head!"

"Oops…"

Kyouya's eyes widened. "What's _that_ supposed to mean?" he demanded. "You don't mean to say that I'm _trapped_ here?!"

"Er, that's…" Tsu-kun tried to think of something to say.

There was suddenly a loud crash and the door burst open, a blond man in his late twenties or early thirties falling through the door.

"Hiii?! Dino-san!"

"Kyouya!" the man named Dino jumped up and stared at the much younger boy. "Oh my god, you really have turned in to a kid! Are you still Kyouya?!"

"How am I supposed to be anyone else and who the hell are you?"

"Oh, uh…" Dino pulled up short. He wasn't prepared for this. "I'm your home tutor, Dino Chiavorone. Er…"

Dino turned to Tsu-kun. "W-What do I do? Tsuna!"

"Don't ask me!" Tsu-kun – no, Tsuna – said despairingly. "Ohh, and he's stuck here too. What do we do…"

"I can take care of him?" suggested Dino. "I am his home tutor after all."

"… You just want to make him appreciate you when he's still young and more easily convinced, don't you?"

"Uh…"

Kyouya folded his legs and watched them talk absentmindedly. He really had no idea what was going on.

"Sawada-san?"

Two people came in. One was a tall man with a huge pompadour. The other was a cute Chinese girl who looked just about Kyouya's age.

"Sawada-san, have you seen Kyou-san?" asked the man with the pompadour. "It's time for I-Pin-san's tutoring."

"I-Pin has been working hard on her Japanese!" the girl added.

"Oh, Kusakabe-san, good timing," Tsuna sighed. "Well, actually…" he pointed to Kyouya, "Kyouya's younger self was hit with the Ten-Year Bazooka."

"What?!" Kusakabe peered over and gasped. "Kyou-san!"

"Hibari-sensei!" squeaked I-Pin in surprise, before lapsing in to muttering Chinese.

"I don't believe it! Did he really get hit!? Oh my gosh, what should we do!? Waaah, I'm panicking so much that I can't speak in proper Japanese!"

"You should calm down a little," Kyouya suggested in Chinese. "At least you're not the one that's stuck."

"EH?!"

"Wow, Kyouya, you speak Chinese?!" gasped Dino.

"I'm part Chinese, why wouldn't I be able to?"

"YOU ARE?!"

"Didn't anyone know?'

"Just me, I think," Tsuna interjected. "He told me a few years ago."

"… Why does he tell you everything, Tsuna?"

"… He just does?"

Kyouya noted that a brief flush had flashed across Tsuna's face for a moment. Kyouya wondered what it was about.

"So…" Tsuna tried to change the subject. "Kyouya, what do you want to do?"

Kyouya tilted his head and considered it, before shrugging. "I don't know. What do you want me to do?"

He realized that everyone was gawking at him.

"What?"

"You…" Takeshi shook his head in surprise. "You just asked our opinion?"

"So?"

"Well… the future Kyouya… NEVER asked what we wanted," Dino said, a little awkwardly. "So it's a little of a shock…"

On the outside:

"…"

On the inside:

_WHAT KIND OF PERSON AM I IN THE FUTURE!? _Kyouya inwardly screamed. Really, was he that bad? And why?

While he was thinking this, Kyouya started coughing. And kept coughing. And shivering.

"Kyouya-san?" Chrome (again, Nagi?) leaned forwards and put a hand to his forehead, frowning motherly. "Are you alright? You look red."

"I fell in a fountain earlier," Kyouya said in between coughs before sneezing rather violently.

"Oh! I'm sorry! I should have changed you in to dry clothes!" exclaimed Tsuna, reaching for him.

"It's okay Boss," Chrome picked Kyouya up. For some reason, Kyouya felt his face heat up even more and was glad that his face was already red. "I'll do it."

"Go drop him off in his room and get some clothes from Lambo's," instructed Tsuna. "They're about the same size, so they should fit."

"Yes, Boss."

Kyouya didn't know what to do. He let Chrome carry him out of the sitting room, through the halls, up several flights of stairs, and down the hall again towards the large doors at the end. Kyouya wondered how anyone could remember how to get here, let alone ANYWHERE in this crazy castle.

… He would learn that Chrome frequently came to his rooms a lot. In due time.

Now that he had a good look at Chrome, Kyouya decided that she was quite attractive. She had long, purplish-blue hair, which had a very strange style in the back that reminded him of a pineapple. Her one eye was a deep blue, the other eye was blocked by an eyepatch. He wondered if she even had an eye underneath it. Everything about her seemed slender, even the curves of her body.

_ARRRRGH!!! Stop thinking like a pervert!_

Chrome opened the door and deposited Kyouya on the bed. Walking in to a bathroom on the side (Kyouya got a peek and saw that it was a traditional Japanese bathroom, which stood out in stark contrast to the Italian styled room), she came back out with a towel and wrapped it around him. Kyouya welcomed the warmth.

"I'll be back," she said gently. "Don't worry if I take really long. I think Lambo-kun's room is somewhere two floors down."

"Two floors?" asked Kyouya. "Isn't this whole floor for rooms?"

"Oh, no. This whole floor is for you personally," Chrome gave him a little smile. "You dislike crowds."

"Oh," Kyouya brooded on that. It was true that he was a bit claustrophobic, but to take it to this extent… Kyouya had an uncomfortable feeling that his future self was a very pushy person.

"Stay here, okay?" Chrome instructed firmly before leaving.

Kyouya sat there, watching her go. She seemed… familiar. And dear to him.

But that was nonsense. He didn't know her. If he was correct and she was eighteen, then back in his time, she would be eight years old, two years younger than he was.

Well, time would tell, he supposed.

She came back, a simple black t-shirt with blue jeans. She gave a little cluck of disapproval at Kyouya's wet hair and rubbed it gently with the towel. "Take better care of yourself," she said softly.

Then she reached over and started to unbutton his white dress shirt (uniform for work).

Brief panic overtook him. "W-Wait!" he squeaked, embarrassed. "I'll do it myself!"

Chrome waited as Kyouya tried to unbutton his shirt, but his fingers were fumbling so much that it was difficult. Kyouya honestly didn't know why, but undressing in front of this person was… slightly unnerving.

Chrome laughed quietly and reached over again to help. Kyouya squeaked again and tried to scramble away. She quickly grabbed him and gave him a little hug. "I'm not going to do anything to you, you realize," she smiled wryly. She put him back down on the bed. Unbeknownst to them, their position looked a bit… compromising.

Kyouya blushed even harder at her words and buried his face in his hands. Why was he so flustered around this person?!

Then bright pink smoke suddenly obscured his vision, just as he fainted.

* * *

Chrome was surprised as pink smoke appeared, and then the older Hibari Kyouya suddenly appeared underneath her. He took in their position with a glance, and smirked. To Chrome's embarrassment, because this Hibari Kyouya was bigger, she was now straddling him.

"Really, Nagi," he purred, eyes narrowing with lust. "What were you trying to do to my younger self?"

"Kyouya-san!" Chrome tried to back away, but Hibari caught her wrists and pulled her close.

"Don't think that you can get away without punishment, Nagi," he whispered before catching her lips in a hot, searing kiss.

* * *

When Kyouya opened his eyes again, instead of Chrome's sapphire eye, he saw Amaya's green eyes looking worriedly down at him.

"Are you okay?"

"Wha?" he asked dizzily.

"When I came home, you had fainted on the floor. You have a really bad fever, you know."

"I see…" he tried to sit up, but Amaya pushed him back down.

"No," she said firmly. "I'm not kidding when I said it was bad. You were completely delusional too. You kept muttering 'Nagi' in your sleep. And you were talking to people who weren't there."

"Oh…" Kyouya leaned back and rested his head on his pillow. He felt exhausted.

"I know you're tired. Go to sleep, you'll feel better tomorrow."

"Yes ma'am," he muttered before drifting off.

_So it was all a dream…_

* * *

Ran watched him sleep for a bit, before she suddenly gave a vicious twitch.

"Ugh," she grunted, rubbing her temples. "Stop it."

She walked out of the room quickly and shut the door, breathing deeply.

"Stop it," she told herself sternly again. "His blood and flames are to keep him alive, not for you to take."

Ran scowled and rubbed her temples again. "Damn it, stupid Genma-chan, stupid necessity, stupid killing urges, stupid stupid stupid body problems…"

She sighed and scratched her arm absentmindedly.

It didn't bleed.

But how could it?

The dead don't bleed.

* * *

**OMAKE:**

Ten years in the future, Tsuna looked up as Hibari walked in to his office/study.

"Welcome back," Tsuna grinned. "Had fun?"

"Not particularly," Hibari replied, sitting on the edge of Tsuna's desk. "Although it was nice to see Namimori again."

"I'm not talking about that," Tsuna's grin grew larger. "I'm talking about all that noise that was coming from your room. You're lucky that I'm the only one who went up to check on you. So did you have fun?"

Hibari smirked. "I suppose. Nagi won't be able to go on any missions for a while though."

"Did you add a sibling?"

"No. Now are you finished that paperwork?"

"Yes," Tsuna handed him a thick stack. Hibari gave a slight nod before leaving.

Tsuna lightly clicked his tongue with a smile as he watched him go.

"Poor Yuki-chan," he chuckled. "Seems like she's going to be an only child for a little while longer…"

* * *

Ufufufu... the mystery deepens.

Please review!


	14. Skylark Arc X: Choices

THIS CHAPTER IS PROBABLY THE SHORTEST I HAVE EVER WRITTEN.

But there is a valid reason! Which comes at the end. And when I say short, I mean SHORT.

I'm sorry... T_T School's started and I don't have as much time as usual. But I'm sure that's the same for all of you.

**Title:**_ Memories Never Fade  
_**Chapter:**_ Skylark Arc Part X: Choices and Decisions  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Action/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!! And there will be more!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_Four_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _Ran ponders of the right thing to do..._

* * *

_What am I going to do?!_

That was the thought of Hibari Amaya, who was actually Chi Amaya, who was actually Izawa Ran.

Everyday, her body was constantly reminded that she was stretching her limit. If this kept up, either she, or Kyouya would die first.

She from lack of life, Kyouya from death at her hands.

So yeah, it was pretty complicated.

_Kill him. Quickly, quickly… kill him!_

Ran frowned as she watched Kyouya water the plants out on the balcony. Her urgings were growing worse everyday. Already her body was trembling in an effort of not to commit a murder.

Ran sighed and thought back to another one of Genma's lessons.

* * *

**_~Flashback~_**

**_"Keep in mind that there is a risk for going back to life for too long," cautioned Genma, as Ran twirled yet another bottle of life-giving elixer in her slender fingers._**

**_"Your point, Genma-chan?"_**

**_"The elixer only will work for a breif period of time, one or two years at most," Genma explained, a little hesitant. "After that period passes, you'll still be 'alive' but you'll be nothing more than a… zombie, I guess would be the best term."_**

**_"A _**_zombie**?" Ran asked in disbelief.**_

**_"That's right. That elixer only gives temporary life, and in the end, it will disappear. It forces the life back in to your body, and it won't be able to leave. And you won't age."_**

**_"That sounds fine to me," shrugged Ran. "So what's the problem?"_**

**_"The same reason that many people prefer death," Genma explained. "The elixer gives a fake life, a half-life, and after the effects wear off, you'll be craving 'real' life."_**

**_"Real?"_**

**_"More accurately, Flames," Genma thought that he was doing a really bad job of explaining. "Flames are a person's life energy. And because you're craving it, you need to kill others to get it. You'll become a killing machine, driven by your own hopeless longing to be alive again."_**

**_"Are you sure?" asked Ran skeptically. _**

**_"Everyone craves what they do not have," Genma said wisely. "And you have neither life or blood."_**

**_"And my Flames?"_**

**_"You'll be producing less Flames for every year that you stay alive."_**

**_"Well, THAT sucks."_**

**_"Yes, it do – wait! That's not what you should be worrying about!"_**

**_~End Flashback~_**

* * *

Ran sighed. _I wasn't planning on staying alive for so long. Kyou-chan's cute face really got me hooked though._

"Amaya-nee?" came Kyouya's voice. "What's wrong?"

_Kill him now!_

Ran froze, took a shaky breath, before turning back to Kyouya with a pained smile on her face. "I'm fine, don't worry too much about me."

"Are you sure? You're all pale."

_I'll be fine as long as you stay about ten feet from me!_ Ran mentally screamed, but instead forced out a grin. "Neechan's tougher than you think. It's all good."

Kyouya stared at her for a bit longer, then shrugged. "If you say so…"

He left. Ran collasped on the couch in relief.

"Dammit…" she muttered. "He doesn't even remember how to fight. What am I going to do if I jump him?"

Ran rolled over and propped her chin on her fist, her feet kicking backwards in the air. "This past year has been wonderful and all, but…" she pondered. "What should I do?"

* * *

And here's where YOU come in, dear readers!

Pick one of the below.

1) Ran gives back Kyouya's memories and lives with him constantly trying to kill her.

2) She doesn't give back his memories, but does something else to shock him in to the cold, evil person that he is today.

Next chapter will come up faster the moment I get at least five votes for one choice. Okay, now vote! (either reviewing or sending me a personal message is fine)


	15. Skylark Arc XI: Ran's Choice

1) Ran gives back Kyouya's memories and lives with him constantly trying to kill her.

That's the winner! Sorry for all you people that voted for number 2...

I AM SO HAPPY WITH THE WAY THE STORY IS GOING!!!!

But I am so convinced that all of the Tenth Generation is the reincarnation of all of the First Generation. I mean, people just can't look that similar! (besides Hibari and Fon. We have reasonable explanations for that *rolls eyes*). The First Mist looks a hell lot like Mukuro. And the First Cloud and Hibari, and Giotto and Tsuna, and... okay, I'll stop.

I actually think I know what historical figure the First Cloud was based off of. I'll look in to it and tell you next time.

To tell the truth, I started to dislike Kyoko and Haru even more now. They are _useless_. Even though they say, "We want to fight with you!" they don't actually DO anything and are only useful as hostages to the other side. Maybe I'm being harsh, but I dislike weaklings. Hibari and I are similar in that retrospect. I prefer kick-butt women like Chrome, Bianchi, or I-Pin. Sure Chrome is shy and also apparently useless (going by the tiny role Amano's got her playing; seriously, Amano, give Chrome a little more love here!), but she's far stronger than others.

Enough of my rants (*sighs*). Sorry.

**Title:**_ Memories Never Fade  
_**Chapter:**_ Skylark Arc Part XI: Ran's Choice  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Action/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!! And there will be more!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_Four_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _Ran has made her choice, and is ready to pay the price... Will things get harder or easier from here?_

* * *

There were two choices that Ran could take to keep Kyouya alive. And she really didn't want to do either. She liked life the way it was now. It was the first time in centuries that she had felt so comfortable.

Ran breathed deeply, the guilt eating her from the inside out.

_Calm down,_ she thought. _This was your decision._

She picked up her cellphone and dialed in a familiar number. One that she hadn't called for a year and a half.

"Vongola Nono? Mi è… Suzuki Aoi."

_What's with Amaya-nee lately?_ pondered Kyouya, walking down the hall to the kitchen. _She's been acting so strange. And she goes out all the time. When she comes back…_

Kyouya shivered slightly. _She always smells like blood._

"Sì... sì... Sono spiacente... sì..."

Kyouya paused as he heard his sister speak in a foreign language. It sounded a little like Spanish… no… Italian?

He peered in to the living room from behind the door. It sounded as if she was apologizing for something. But what could that be?

Unknown to him, Ran sensed him peeking from outside of the room. She switched to Japanese. "Yes… do you remember that person that I recommended for 'that' all those years ago? Yes, that one. His name was Miyagi Fon."

Kyouya felt a sudden pain in his head. "Ow…" he whispered quietly. However, he was used to small pains like this, so he kept listening to the door.

Ran had heard him. "Yes," she raised her voice. "Oh, I see… so you have found him. I'm having a bit of a problem here… But I found the next Cloud."

Kyouya's ears perked. Cloud? What did that mean?

"I went to great lengths to get him… though they were rather brutal," she laughed. "Even you might disapprove. What did I do? Mm… hoodwinked some desperate idiots in to killing his family."

There was no denying the sudden surge of hatred that flowed through Kyouya's veins. He breathed in shakily, wondering why he wanted to kill his older sister.

**_She's not your sister_.**

Something inside his mind was whispering. Something terrifying.

**_She isn't related to you, you know? She's a monster. Something that you should be very scared of._**

_Who are you?_ He wondered.

**_Me? I'm your conscience… your hidden conscience._**

_Hidden…?_

**_Set me free…_** the voice was whispering urgently. **_Come… break this seal and release who you really are…_**

Kyouya closed his eyes…

* * *

**_He was within the depths of his own mind, inside a room where there were toys and books. His work uniform was hanging in the corner. A window opened to the outside showed a beautiful garden._**

**_Yet for some reason, Kyouya felt that something was off. There were occasionally flickers, as if the whole thing was a badly connected T.V. screen. And when he looked up, he realized that there was a chandilier of what looked like black onyx attached to a gold structure. However, he soon saw that it wasn't onyx, it was black fire, which gave no heat._**

**_A door was directly in front of him. He reached out to the door to open it, when he felt a sudden pain inside. The whole room seemed to shake, like an earthquake. Only when he stumbled back from the door was it still._**

**_He didn't want to proceed, but something told him he must. He reached out again, ignoring the sudden jolt of pain. He turned the doorknob and pulled it open._**

**_There was a corridor, half lit by that strange black flame, half lit by violet and indigo flames. Kyouya was attracted to the black fire, like a moth to a candle, when he gave a sharp shake of the head and turned around to the violet and indigo side of the hall._**

**_Upon closer inspection, he saw that all the doors were locked there. And all of them still had that curious black flame as a seal upon them. When he touched it, it didn't burn him, but it gave him this unpleasant shiver through his body. He ignored it and opened the door._**

**_This room was filled with weapons. Kyouya stared at the katanas, the guns, the handcuffs, the tonfa… he reached for the tonfa, nostalgia overtaking him. They felt comfortable in his hands, and he took them with him as he proceeded to the next door. _**

**_This one was a traditional Japanese room. It looked familiar. It felt like… home. But wasn't that apartment his home? Not this place… There was a futon folded neatly in the corner, carrying a faint scent of himself. He decided to go to the next room._**

**_This room was small, about the size of a large closet not big enough to be a walk-in. The walls were covered with pictures, pictures of people that Kyouya felt like he should know, but didn't know. A pretty, laughing woman holding up a little girl who looked a lot her. They were having a picnic… A handsome man with a striking resemblance to Kyouya sitting on a couch… an old grandmother who smiled kindly at the camera and for some reason her hands were folded oddly in her lap… Somehow it looked like all the photos had an empty space. Kyouya's head started to feel dizzy all over again. _**

**_Something was wrong with that room. It was distorted. That damned black flame was swirling around the ceiling, sometimes covering the photos with a smoky haze. There were flickers in the photos, an outline shimmering then disappearing._**

**_He felt sleepy. Looking around the room, he found a wooden stand. It was beautifully made, with handcarved imprints of flowers, vines, and flying birds. They looked… familiar. The structure was built to hold a pair of something… oh!_**

**_He took out the tonfa and set them gently on the stand. The tonfa glimmered in the light, and the black flames slowly faded away._**

**_In each of the photos, his own image appeared. He was holding the little girl's hand… he was standing behind the couch… he was sitting in the old woman's lap…_**

**_He turned to the largest photo that had been covered by the flames. It was a family portrait. The woman, the girl, the man, and the old woman were all grouped together. In the center sat Kyouya. The image of himself smiled down at him, then the mouth moved, saying something silently._**

_Well done._

* * *

Kyouya's eyes snapped open with a start. He could still hear his sister… no, Chii Amaya talking. "Yes… it was rather funny actually. This guy didn't even have a grudge on him for killing his dad, but I just got him to kill them anyways. I'm good at manipulation. Hmm? Oh, stop sounding so superior, the Next Generation needs him. He's strong."

Kyouya gripped the edge of the door. He… had been used? Kyouya _hated_ that. His family had been killed… by the orders of this woman? Kyouya hated that too (maybe a little less than being used, but still).

Ran laughed and leaned back on the couch. "Don't be such a worrywart. I erased his memory, everything will be fine!"

_SNAP!_

A piece of the door came off in Kyouya's hand, wooden shards piercing his fingers, but he didn't care. Ran glanced his way and smirked. "I'll call you back."

She shut the phone with a click and let it fall on to the couch. She got up and walked over to Kyouya. The younger boy suddenly realized how much taller Amaya was than him. He hadn't noticed before.

"So you remember?" Ran looked smug.

"Yes, I do," Kyouya's eyes flashed dangerously. "And I'll kill you."

"Try."

Kyouya flew at her. Ran made a movement that he couldn't see, and he was suddenly slammed in to the ground. Ran's hand was like an iron claw on his neck. She smiled sweetly at him.

"Too slow, honey."

The jibe, for some reason, hurt even more than the constraint around his neck. He strained to sit up, but she wouldn't let go.

"I'm sorry," she murmured. "But I can't let you die like this."

The comment didn't make sense. Wasn't she killing him by choking off his air already?

"I can do worse, you know."

_Is she reading my mind?_

"Just your expression."

Kyouya felt another surge of anger through him. One of the things that he hated most was being read like a book. He grabbed on to Ran's arm and focused all his energy in to getting it off him. Amaya frowned, and then relented. Kyouya sat up, gasping.

"Do you hate me?" she asked quietly.

Kyouya's eyes glaring up at her answered her question. She sighed.

"I'm sorry," she whispered again. "But this is for the best. If you truly hate me… kill me, Kyou-chan."

Kyouya growled. "Of course I will."

"Good," suddenly her voice turned brisk and she stood up and offered him a hand. "Training starts at six. I want you up by 5:30 a.m. and if you're not, I'll do stuff to you that's not supposed to happen until you're of legal age."

Kyouya's eyebrow twitched. "Huh…?"

"Oh please, you don't really think you can kill me as you are now, do you?" Ran rolled her eyes. "You need training."

"What are you talking abou – "

"Training, you dimwit. You need all the skill and luck you can get to eliminate me. Oh, and you're going to school. No more homeschooling from now on. You're going to Namimori Elementary."

"I – "

"No buts, honey," Ran's smile was devious. "I'm going to make you the strongest living, even if it takes every dead bone in my body to do it. Then you can defend yourself (against me)."

Kyouya still didn't understand. "But… why are you teaching me how to kill you?"

"Because life (or my remainder of it) is a lot more interesting like that," Ran flashed him a grin. "Now let's get started. I don't have a lot of time to teach you."

Kyouya looked helpless for a moment, then hardened his gaze and gave Ran a look that could keep ice in the summer. "Fine. But you'll regret it."

"That's the spirit!"

Kyouya scowled and left the room. Ran let her smile drop and collasped on to the couch.

"It's better this way," she murmured. "It is… needed to be this way."

Her scratched at her arm with her long nails again. The skin split and curled, but it did not bleed, nor did it hurt. Ran cringed. "Wonderful," she grumbled. "Now I'm losing my sense of touch."

She could feel it inside of her.

The hourglass's last sands falling to the bottom…

* * *

Aiiiii... the next chapter will be faster, hopefully. My school's reaching the end of the first quarter so I've got last minute tests popping up. I can't believe it, why do I have to have two huge tests in a row?! Arrrrgh!!! Wish me luck!

Oh, and review!


	16. Skylark Arc XII: Fujikage Shirou

I feel like no one read the last chapter because there was a sudden surge of updates. No one noticed mine T_T ...

I'm sort of cramming everything in to this chapter about why Hibari is, well... Hibari. What defines Hibari Kyouya? His 'bite to death', his hatred of crowds, his commanding, his love of the town... I just sort of stuck it all in here.

Oh, and another permenant OC will be joining us in this chapter. Male, but not a homosexual male like my dear Fukuzawa Mareo XD.

Also, I'm thinking about making a drabble fic for pretty much everyone. It'll be purely request, but I'll need a pairing, a rating, a prompt, and anything SPECIFIC that you want in there. I might not be able to crank out fics that quickly, but I can certaintly type a couple up if you people want.

**Title:**_ Memories Never Fade  
_**Chapter:**_ Skylark Arc Part XII: Fujikage Shirou  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Action/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!! And there will be more!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_Four_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _Miyagi Kyouya is now gone, and a new boy is in his place... but even Hibari Kyouya can make a friend if need be. Enter Fujikage Shirou._

* * *

Kyouya stared uneasily up at Namimori Elementary. He had never been to school in all of his memory. Ever. The idea of school scared him a little. He wasn't that good with other people.

"Hey!" a voice behind him said. "Are you just going to stand there, or are you going to let people by?"

Kyouya turned to see a bunch of kids staring at him.

"… I'm not blocking the whole thing. You can just walk around me," he said coolly, then turned around.

The other kids stared at him in surprise before muttering rebelliously and passing him through the gates.

"What a jerk…"

"God, what's with that attitude?"

"I couldn't tell, was that a girl or a boy?"

"I'M. A. BOY," Kyouya loudly deadpanned. The other kids flinched and started to walk faster.

Kyouya sighed and rolled his eyes. He wasn't going to like school, he had that feeling. He was about to enter the school when something bumped in to him from behind.

"Oof! Oh, sorry… We~ll, hello beautiful."

Kyouya gave a twitch. He turned around stiffly to see a boy his age grinning at him. The boy had spiky red hair, and a pair of brown-tinted sunglasses. His eyes were also brown, and he was the same height as Kyouya.

"Nice to meet you, miss," the boy made a gallent bow. "The name's Fujikage Shirou."

"Shirou? They call you Shirou when you have red hair?"

"Touche," laughed Shirou. "And your name is?"

"Mi – " Kyouya started to say, but for some reason it couldn't get out. "Miya – "

"Miya?" Shirou's face brightened. "That's a lovely name, Miya-chan!"

"No!" Kyouya glared at him. "It's Miya… Mi…" Kyouya gave an exasperated groan. "It's Hibari Kyouya."

"What? That sounds nothing like Miya! How do you get Hibari Kyouya from Miya?!"

"Are you an idiot?"

"Oh! Spicy!" Shirou grinned. "That's cool. I'm cool with that. But I didn't think that Kyouya was a girl name."

"It's not."

"Oh, you're parents are just weird?"

"No they're not!" Kyouya flared. Shirou held up his hands in a placating gesture. "Sorry. But then why is your name like that?"

"Because I'm a guy!" Kyouya snapped, whirling around and stomping away. "And you have obviously never dated in your life, not with those stupid pick-up lines!"

He was so intent and getting away that he didn't see Shirou laugh and wave at him.

"Sorry about that, dude! See you later!"

* * *

Kyouya yawned as the teacher drolled on and on about the Edo period. He was bored.

_I know all this stuff…_

He decided to use this time to look around at his new classroom. If he was going to be here for the rest of the year, he had better get used to it.

The classroom wasn't exactly pleasant. The walls were a light shade of honeydew, reminding Kyouya of Amaya's room, which was the same color. Everything else was either black, brown, or white. The desks were mahogany brown. The floor tiles were light brown. The shelves were oak brown. The blackboard was black. The doors and windowframes were white. And the teacher wore a loud blue suit with an equally loud white and yellow checkered tie.

The student uniform was a similar version to that of the middle school (second version, not first [1]). Blue sweater-vest over a white, short-sleeved polo shirt, with black, shorter trousers. They didn't have a tie. The jacket was also blue, but it was already March so nobody wore it.

Kyouya's gaze flickered over the students. He saw that Shirou guy, sitting third seat from the front. Kyouya himself was sitting in the same row, last seat at the back, for which he was grateful. He didn't want someone staring in to the back of his head all day.

The other students were either raptly at attention, or doing their own little thing while the teacher talked. One had a cellphone underneath the table and was apparently texting a friend. Another was doing her nails and blowing gently on them to make them dry faster. One guy was even fast asleep, his workbook standing up to block his head from view.

_All of them are idiots_, was what Kyouya was thinking.

Even the teacher didn't show any particular ethusiasm. He was just reciting what he had written on a piece of paper earlier.

_What a boring person._

The lunch bell rang. Kyouya almost thanked the heavens. That was half of the day gone. Only another bit to go.

He took his lunch and walked out of the classroom, up to the roof. No one was there, luckily, but just to be sure… He decided to sit on the water tower.

Kyouya had always been a good climber, and he was rather fond of heights. He enjoyed being close to the sky (see what I did there? XD), and the clouds.

Then he looked down and caught his breath.

He had to admit. From a bird's eye view, Namimori was a beautiful town. And peaceful. He could see a shrine on the edge of the town, and decided to go there once in a while to pray.

"Hey! Be careful up there!"

Kyouya looked down at the school's roof to see that guy staring up at him again… "What do you want, Fujikage Shirou?"

"Just Shirou is fine, man," his laugh was easy as he swung himself up to join the darker-haired boy on the water tower. "Heeh! This is a nice view! Don't you think so, Kyouya?"

Kyouya cringed. _What's with this guy… first three hours after I've met him and he's calling me by my first name?_ "It's alright."

"It's not just alright, it's beautiful," Shirou declared and sat down next to him. He unwrapped a sandwich that had been clumsily made. Shirou noticed Kyouya staring at it.

"What, this?" Shirou held it up before taking a huge bite, smiling. He quickly swallowed before opening his mouth again. Kyouya noted that this person at least had decent manners. "My little sister made it for me. My parents are always so busy, so they never get a chance to take care of me and my siblings."

"How many do you have?" Kyouya cursed himself instantly. Never ask questions! Asking made you sound interested!

"I don't know," Shirou shrugged. "There are too many for me to count. Half of the kids are my half-siblings, and some of them are adopted. And a couple we just take in from the street. I'm the oldest by about three years."

"Explains why your parents are so busy," muttered Kyouya.

"Yeah," admitted Shirou. "It is kind of strange. They've been working themselves to the bone lately. When I get old enough, I'll take some of my siblings with me, and help raise them."

"You've got a while to go," Kyouya said dismissively, opening his bento.

"Just a couple years. I've been saving up my money, so I can rent my own apartment or something. And I'll get a job."

"You're too optimistic," Kyouya scowled, picking up an egg roll. "Things never go the way you want them to."

"But isn't it better that way?"

Kyouya raised an eyebrow at him. Shirou grinned. "When you don't know what's going to happen," he pointed dramatically to the horizon, "don't you find the future exciting?"

"No. And you're pointing at Kokuyo," Kyouya slapped his hand down. "Just hurry up and finish eating, then leave me alone."

"Man, you're grumpy," Shirou frowned and plopped down next to him. "If I didn't have so much patience having to deal with little kids all the time, I would probably punch you."

"Go ahead," Kyouya scoffed. They sat in silence for a little while, before Shirou noticed Kyouya's bento.

"Whoa! That looks great!" Shirou stared admiringly at it. "Did your mom make that?"

"No," monotone and cool. Good.

"Your dad?"

"No."

"A sister?"

"Don't even go there," Kyouya grimanced. He didn't trust Amaya to make a lunch for him, the idea was just too weird.

"She can't cook?"

"I don't have a sister."

"Oh. So who made it?"

"I did," Kyouya shrugged. "Cooking is easy."

"Heeh, you must be a pretty good chef then!"

Kyouya rolled his eyes and chose not to reply. This guy was so annoying! Were all normal kids his age like this?

_Normal…_

Immediately, Kyouya turned gloomy. Was this how normal kids were? Kyouya was farther from normal than he thought then. Apparently, normal kids were little pricks who asked annoying questions. On the second thought, he was glad that he wasn't normal.

Even if it seperated him from everyone else.

* * *

And so, Miyagi Kyouya threw away his old name, which was too painful to say, to become Hibari Kyouya, the cold, indifferent, and violent student of Namimori Elementary. Kyouya was the type of person who would sooner strangle you than shake your hand. And those who found about him carrying weapons to school went crying to their teachers… but soon the teachers were crying as well.

Kyouya began to start a domination, which he wasn't entirely comfortable with. He simply wanted to be left alone, but he got a small band of followers who insisted on following him around everywhere. He often beat them with his tonfa, but they kept crawling back to him.

And Amaya. Amaya was a mystery. Despite the fact that he kept trying to kill her everyday, she acted normally. Everytime he came at her, she would toy with him for a little while, then stop him, directing him on how to properly swing his tonfa, or how to dodge a particularly sharp attack. He would obey without resisting… The last time he resisted had not ended very… pleasantly. Let's just say that he tred on thin ice every time this happened.

Shirou was another annoyance. While that small band of followers were smart enough not to intrude on his personal quiet time, Shirou kept barging up on to the roof every day to eat with him for lunch. It reminded Kyouya of a dog that didn't know the "sit and stay" command. Kyouya had tested his patience, and had refrained from killing Shirou on the spot, but one day, he couldn't take it anymore.

"Kyouya!" Shirou slung an arm around his shoulders. "Are you listening?"

Kyouya snapped after two weeks of patience and out came his collaspible tonfa. He swung at Shirou, who, to Kyouya's surprise, dodged the attack.

"Whoa! Where'd that come from?" Shirou was genuinely startled. Kyouya growled frustratedly and swung again, this time with more force. Shirou side-stepped and ducked when Kyouya pulled out his other tonfa.

"Seriously, where did you pull that out from?" Shirou pointed at the tonfa. "The one place I think you could put those without showing is way to painful to imagine."

Kyouya let out a snarl and swiped again. This time, Shirou blocked it with his arm, then winced.

"Owww! That's a real weapon?!"

Kyouya lowered his weapon and gazed at Shirou suspiciously. "How did you do that?"

"Took karate for two years before Dad had to pull me out of classes. They were getting too expensive," Shirou peered at the newly formed bruise on his arm and winced. "I wasn't the best. Only a green belt. But I always was flexible, and had decent reflexes, so I can survive in a fight. But if you ask me, swinging around that baton is just plain cheating against a guy who doesn't have anything to defend himself with."

"I am above any judgement or rules," Kyouya said dismissively. "Those who say 'it's unfair' are simply too weak to fight back. 'A master painter can make art with any brush,'" he quoted a saying his brother used to say to him a lot.

"What's that mean?"

"Are you stupid? It means a person who specializes in something can use anything they want to do that something. Any weapon, whether it be a tonfa or their bare hands, is a possible weapon for a fighter."

Shirou shrugged. "Sorry man, you got too deep for me to care what you were saying anymore," he laughed and quickly ducked. Kyouya had taken another swing at him.

* * *

Kyouya and Amaya had established a sort of relationship/understanding between them. When he wasn't trying to kill her, they acted like a normal pair of siblings… okay, maybe 'normal' isn't quite the word that we're looking for.

The hate was still there. It would probably always be there. And it would most likely never go away. But it had lessened slightly. Kyouya didn't know why, but Amaya was an impossible person to hate completely, no matter how hard he tried. Perhaps it was because by living with her, he could see her kindness.

Anyway, Kyouya was staring over Namimori from his balcony, watching the sun set. Amaya came up from behind him. "It's beautiful, isn't it?"

"… Yes," Kyouya agreed. Amaya smiled gently and leaned on the wall next to him.

"Do you like it here?"

Kyouya considered it, before nodding again. "I like it here."

Amaya chuckled. "That's good… Because your parents used to live here too, remember?"

"Mom did," Kyouya nodded, a small lump coming up in his throat.

"That's right," Amaya laughed quietly. "She loved this town and protected it. Because it was dear to her. Her spirit probably still lingers here, watching both the town, and you."

Amaya left and Kyouya thought about it. He was still thinking, even when he went to bed at night.

* * *

The next day found three boys spray painting the walls of the school gates. They were stopped by our soon-to-be rule enforcer. A couple whips with that metal rod and they were sent off crying.

"Don't vandalise," Kyouya said to no one in particular, before grabbing one of his flunkies that had been conviniently standing nearby and shoved him towards the wall. "Get some of the others and clean that up. I want that gone before the end of the day."

"Yessir!" his flunkie made a smart salute before running off to find his friends and cleaning tools.

Kyouya sniffed and went to patrol. It was time that the rules were upheld.

His mother would have been so proud.

* * *

Despite this, Kyouya was never actually left alone. Students tried to talk to him and teachers tried to get him to open up. Of course Kyouya just beat them up, but Shirou's talk about fairness had gotten to him. Maybe he should give them a fair warning first.

One day when he was walking home, he passed by a cat that he had seen around. It was old, mean, and surprisingly cute. Kyouya understood animals better than humans, and knew to leave the cat alone. He watched as a child, younger than him, gave a little squeal of delight at the sight of the cat and rushed to pet it, only to be held back by his mother.

"No," chided his mother gently. "If you get too close to it, it'll bite! Things like that are better left alone."

"Aww…" the child pouted, but complied.

And Kyouya, standing there, began to think…

* * *

"Get out of my way," Kyouya said baldly to the boy in front of him. It was one that had encountered at the very beginning of Kyouya's school career.

Apparently, the boy remembered that. "Why can't you just walk around me?"

"Get out of my way before I bite you to death."

"Bite to death? What's that supposed to mean?!" the crowd around them tittered nervously.

A few minutes later, a barely breathing, bloody mass on the ground was all that remained of the one who defied him. Kyouya had gone all out for once. He'd have to give his tonfa a polish and a wash later.

"That's what it means," Kyouya said calmly, tucking his tonfa back in that hidden place. "And it goes for all of you. In my school, you will go by my rules. Simple as that. Or I will bite you all to death."

Kyouya didn't have much trouble with others after that.

* * *

"Pretty cool saying," Shirou grinned at him. Kyouya glared.

"Can't you ever just leave me alone?"

"Nope!"

_THWACK!!_ "Prepare to be bitten to death."

Shirou had quite a few bruises after that.

* * *

The reign of Hibari Kyouya in Namimori Elementary was a somewhat peaceful time. Even the teachers had to admit that the students were behaving better than usual. They would thank Kyouya…

But then they'd get a tonfa to the face.

Kyouya watched a bunch of kids all yelling and playing together with a soccer ball from the roof. He felt an odd twinge in him.

_I don't need friends,_ he thought firmly. _I don't! They'll leave you in the end…_

_… But then why… do I… feel so jealous?_

_… No…!_

A few seconds later, the kids were running away, screaming. Kyouya's eyes were alight with malice.

"Everyone here will be bitten to death for crowding in front of me."

_And causing hidden feelings to swell within me…_

* * *

Kyouya rather liked his new life. Everything seemed much simpler, and repeated days grew in to routines that he fell in to and preferred.

But one day, that all fell apart.

It started on a rainy day, where Kyouya was watching the wet world from the comfort of behind his glass door. Then, from the the main door, someone was banging on it with his fists.

Amaya went to open the door. A red blur streaked across the room and flung itself on Kyouya.

A very surprised brunette found Shirou sobbing uncontrolably on his shoulder. When Amaya asked what was wrong, Shirou sobbed out:

"My parents are gone! They left us!"

Kyouya's eyes were impassive.

_Nothing on this earth can be forever_.

After a cup of strong tea, Shirou hiccupped out the story. Apparently, the real reason that his parents had been working so hard was so they could pay for airplane tickets for out of the country. Amaya was shaking her head and rubbing soothing circles on Shirou's back. Kyouya was already doing him a favor by not beating him up for being a weakling.

"Idiot, are you an herbivore?" Kyouya was looking at him sourly. It was a term that he found to suit most weak people. He himself was a carnivore, of course.

"But… but… they're my _parents_! They aren't supposed to leave us!" Shirou cried.

"Suck it up," Kyouya slid off the couch and retreated to his room. "You can't have everything in life."

He didn't see Amaya's glare or Shirou's horrified stare.

Kyouya didn't care. He might have broken if he hadn't left.

* * *

That night, Shirou had gone home to take care of his siblings. Amaya stood in Kyouya's doorway, blocking the boy who wanted to go take a bath.

"Out of my way," Kyouya's eyes were frosty. Amaya's was frostier.

Bending down, she slapped him hard across the face with her full strength. It sent Kyouya flying, crashing against the wall.

"What?!" he snapped at her, rubbing his head.

"What," she stared at him for a bit before saying quietly, "do you think is worse? Parents who loved you and had no choice but to leave you, or parents who did not love you and left because they never cared?"

She left and Kyouya sat there, lost in his thoughts.

Back in her own room, Ran broke down and cried.

"I think," she whispered to herself, "that the worse types are the one who hate their children enough to hurt them."

She was shaking when she crawled in to bed without changing her clothes, and was still crying when she fell asleep.

* * *

The next day, Shirou did not come up to the roof. Kyouya ordered his underlings to bring Shirou to him. They immediately complied and Shirou was thrown up on to the roof of the stairway.

Kyouya was starting to grow fond of the whole 'being boss' business.

"What?" his voice was dull and flat. Kyouya frowned and threw a bento at him.

"Eat," he ordered and turned to eat his own food.

"I don't need your – "

"Eat before I bite you to death, and I will be serious this time."

Shirou grudgingly muttered "Thanks," before opening it and eating. After some quiet munching, he murmured. "It's good…"

"You'd better appreciate it," Kyouya's tone was offhand, but dangerous. Everyone in school knew him by that tone of voice. "I don't cook for just anyone."

"What about your sister?" Shirou was curious.

"I get my food, she gets my food. It's an understanding between us," Kyouya didn't look Shirou entirely in the eye. "And besides, she's not my sister. I just live with her."

"WHAT?!"

Kyouya flinched backwards slightly and looked at Shirou with his eyebrows raised. "Yes?"

"You LIVE with a babe like that?! She's not related?! Dude! You have to take advantage of it!"

"… She's a what?" Kyouya didn't think that Amaya was particularly beautiful. She had above average looks, certaintly, but she was also rather on the plain side compared to other beauties. Simple, long brown straight hair (though sometimes she curled it), bright, clear, green eyes, and a good facial structure and fine body (Kyouya berated himself for thinking like that). She was attractive, but not a 'babe' (then again, that his only his opinion).

"A babe! A doll! A freakin' princess! You're so lucky, you get an earlier chance of youth!"

"… First you're a goth, then you talk like a Yankee, and now you're talking like an old man," Kyouya rolled his eyes and turned away. "And don't bring lunches to school from now on. I'll bring them."

Shirou gazed at him for a moment before questioning. "Why are you being nice to me? I thought you hated people."

"…" Kyouya walked away without looking back. "You and I could probably understand each other's pain better than outsiders can."

"Pain?" Shirou's eyes widened. "You mean… your parents…?"

"They left me. Along with my older brother and little sister. But not in the terms that you're thinking of."

"Oh…"

Kyouya was about to open the staircase door, when Shirou suddenly glomped him from behind, burying his face in Kyouya's shoulder.

"… Okay, I'm just going to ask this now, but are you a homosexual?" Kyouya squirmed a little in Shirou's grip.

"No… I'm not," Shirou's voice was muffled. "It's just… wow…" he looked up at Kyouya, his eyes bright. "I've decided! You're my best friend from now on!"

"WHAT?!"

"No changing my mind! We'll be like brothers from now on!"

"Hey, wait… Oi! Don't I get a say in this?!"

"No!"

* * *

And that was how Hibari Kyouya made his first friend. Albeit a tad reluctantly. But they did grow close in the end.

So close, that eventually, Shirou and Amaya were the first to know that after God knows how many years later, Hibari Kyouya had become the Cloud Guardian of the Vongola.

* * *

[1] You know how Amano suddenly changes the Namimori Middle uniform design? That's what I mean.

So now the story is moving along a little more, and the arc will be ending soon, only to have a new one in it's place. God, this is going to be a long story... and probably not all correct after Amano's done.

I'm getting C's and B's in all my subjects! AGGGGH!!! I need to pull it up or Mom will take my computer away T_T


	17. Skylark Arc XIII: Days Rolling By

I'm cramming again... the next chapter will be the last chapter of this arc, I promise (I hope).

I almost forgot about Tetsuya, so I crammed everything in to here again T_T. God, I'm tired...

**Title:**_ Memories Never Fade  
_**Chapter:**_Skylark Arc Part XIII: Days Rolling By...  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Action/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!! And there will be more!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_Four_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _Kyouya, now the Chairman of the Namimori Disciplinary Committee, has appointed Kusakabe Tetsuya as his right hand, met Sawada Tsunayoshi, and became the drifting Cloud... but everything will not be peaceful for long._

* * *

When Hibari Kyouya had entered Namimori Middle High School, he had taken his followers with him and established an organization called the Namimori Junior High Disciplinary Committee. He had found the best room in the school to be the Reception Room and had the first meeting there after the first day of school. He himself was the Chairman, and he had yet to elect a Vice Chairman. As a way to make the school know their role and difference, Kyouya and Amaya made different outfits for the Committee, making them slightly old school. Black pants, white dress shirt, and a black blazer. Kyouya wore his blazer similar to a cloak to signify his importance. Even when he fought, it wouldn't fall off.

He had meant to make Shirou his right-hand man, but said boy had dropped out of school as soon as they had graduated elementary school together.

"Sorry, Kyouya," Shirou had thrown an arm around his shoulders. "But I've got no choice. My little brothers and sisters need me."

Kyouya had understood. If Shirou's siblings were as young as he said they were, then Shirou was going to need all the help he could get. He had never been over to Shirou's house, but he had a feeling that he didn't want to. The last thing he wanted was to bond with a bunch of brats.

(It never occurred to him that he might be a pretty big brat himself.)

He helped Shirou the only way he knew how; give him a job at Amaya's café. Amaya paid him maximum wage, but that still wasn't enough for all of Shirou's siblings. Kyouya did lend a little of his bank savings now and then (he now owned all the money of the Miyagi family after all). Shirou promised to pay them back some day when he got old enough.

But for the time being, Kyouya did need another person to be his right hand, though he wasn't sure who could possibly be up to such a challenge.

But then, he found the perfect candidate.

His name was Kusakabe Tetsuya, a first year. His hair was shaped in a huge pompadour, which made him rather dubious to Kyouya, but Kusakabe had joined the Disciplinary Committee with total enthusiasm. He enforced Kyouya's ideals strongly, and was strong enough to beat most who strayed out of line back in to shape.

Of course, Kyouya did not take to him right away. But one day…

* * *

"Mutinous herbivores," Kyouya muttered as he listened to some of his subordinates complain about him. He was laying on the roof of the school, behind the stairway. His subordinates didn't know he was there, or else they wouldn't be saying what they were saying.

"Chairman is completely crazy!"

"He'll just end up killing us!"

"He should be stopped."

"Maybe we could overtake him? Even Chairman should be defeated by numbers…"

"Well, who wants to have a go at him first?"

Kyouya gave a silent sigh and closed his eyes. He didn't care what they particularly thought. He knew that having people like him was impossible. He'd bite them all to death later. He didn't mind ruling by fear.

"Wait a minute!" a voice rang out clearly in the din. "That isn't fair!"

Kyouya peeked from behind the edge of the wall, watching as Kusakabe Tetsuya made a stand for him.

"Hibari-san just wants to protect the school! There's nothing wrong with that, is there?" Kusakabe protested. Kyouya quietly scoffed. As if they would listen to him.

But surprisingly, they did listen to him. Kusakabe was well liked within the Committee. His energy and devotion were much appreciated. Some guys within the Committee had styled their hair to be like his, despite the fact that it was incredibly difficult to shape. That just added on to Kusakabe's popularity.

"I guess it isn't all bad…"

"And being a member of the Committee has quite a few perks."

"Yeah…"

They all sighed. "I guess it wouldn't hurt to keep following the Chairman…"

Behind the wall, Kyouya also made a decision.

* * *

"Chairman, you wanted to see me?" Kusakabe entered, a little nervous, before standing still in shock.

The Chairman was… sewing?!

"Hmm?" Kyouya glanced up and then back down to his gold thread and needle. "Sit down, Kusakabe Tetsuya."

Kusakabe gulped and quickly sat down on one of the couches. He fidgited and watched as the Chairman slowly sew golden kanji on to a red band of cloth. He tried to crane his neck and read it.

"Stop squirming, Kusakabe Tetsuya, or I will bite you to death."

"So-Sorry!" Kusakabe gave a guilty jump. Kyouya gave a little "hmph" and lapsed in to silence. Kusakabe was getting increasingly nervous and decided to speak up. "S-Sir…"

"I heard it yesterday."

"Eh?" Kusakabe was momentarily confused. "What do you mean?"

"Your little speech about why following me was a good idea," Kyouya paused and examined his handiwork. Finding slight dissatisfication, he picked out some of the threads and set back to sewing.

"You were there?!"

"Of course. Even if I wasn't, word would have reached me eventually," Kyouya was secretly referring to Amaya, who seemed to know about everything that went on in town. If you were five miles away, closed your door and coughed, she would ask if you were sick the next day. That had happened to Shirou, and Kyouya had been stumped on how Amaya could possibly know. When he had asked, she had simply said, "Cameras and spies," then went on with her magazine. Kyouya had been very careful to check the bathroom from corner to corner after that.

Kusakabe squirmed in his seat. "Yes… well… I thought that since we work for you, we should respect you."

"I thought so," Kyouya finished his work and nodded with approval. He stood and approached Kusakabe, who flinched. Kyouya inwardly sighed. Even though Kusakabe was loyal, he was still afraid.

He bent to fix something around Kusakabe's arm. Then he stood and admired the effect of red on black.

Kusakabe looked. It was a red armband, with the golden kanji _Disciplinary Committee Vice President_sewn on it. Only then did Kusakabe notice that Kyouya was wearing a similar band, only it said _President_ instead of _Vice President_.

"Sir…?"

"From now on, Kusakabe Tetsuya," Kyouya said calmly, "you will be my right-hand man, the person I will depend on to keep the others disciplined. You are the second most important person within this school, third if you count the headmaster of our school."

"… I'm guessing the headmaster is second to you?"

"Exactly. Good understanding, Kusakabe Tetsuya."

Kusakabe's eyes were shining. He flung himself at Kyouya's feet and knelt down in front of him. "I will be your most faithful subordinate, sir!"

"Good," Kyouya's eyes were cool. "You may leave now. I have more armbands to make."

"Sir!" Kusakabe immediately left, leaving Kyouya alone, who let a small curve of a smirk to unfurl over his lips.

"Well, that's one problem taken care of," he murmured and picked up his thread and needle again. Pulling out another band of red, he began his work all over again.

* * *

"So you appointed a right-hand then?" asked Shirou. He was taking a break from the harrowing job of waiting tables.

"Yeah," Kyouya pulled out a tray of pastries from the oven. He took one and broke it in half, sharing it with Shirou. A couple crumbs spread on the open window sill were for the birds. "Not as great as you would be, I suppose, but it was the best of the lot."

"Hmm, I see," Shirou bit in to the pastry and breathed through his mouth to cool it. "Sorry Kyouya, but I need this job."

"I know," Kyouya bit in to his half of the pastry. The sweet flavor almost made his eyes water. Not from emotions, just that he thought it was too sweet for his tastes.

"Are you crying?"

"Too hot."

"You've got a cat's tongue, huh?"

(Author's Note: Cat's tongue means that a person's tongue is very sensitive to the temperature of the food. I've got one too.)

Amaya's head popped in from the door. "Hey Shirou-kun, your break's over in two minutes."

"Oh, right!" Shirou swallowed the rest of his pastry in a hurry and adjusted his tie. "How do I look?"

"You look fine, but you're missing something."

"What? What am I missing?"

"Here," Kyouya pinned an armband to Shirou's arm. It was exactly alike to the other's only it said _Disicplinary Committee External Advisor_.

"Eh?! Kyouya?"

"You're part of my Committee too, you're the **real**Vice Chairman, in a way. Just don't tell Kusakabe Tetsuya that, I fed him a load of crap earlier about how I'm going to depend on him to help me."

"I – I don't know what to say, Kyouya," Shirou touched the armband. "Thanks…"

"Mm, you'd better go back to work now."

"Yeah! Don't worry, Kyouya, I'll be the best second-in-command ever!" he grinned and gave Kyouya a hug.

"Great, now stop choking me and go."

"Oops. Sorry."

* * *

The days went by. Time kept moving. Kyouya didn't care. He had become fond of ruling Namimori Middle, and decided that he would stay for a little longer than nessecary.

"But why?" Amaya had asked him one day when he told her of his decision.

"… Mom used to rule here too."

They left it at that.

* * *

Kyouya knew everything that the school offered to teach, so he started to skip classes. The teachers didn't care; as a matter of fact, they were happier when he wasn't there. Kyouya started to take naps up on the roof, enjoying the sun.

For god knows how many days, months, or years passed when Sawada Tsunayoshi entered the school. Kyouya remembered his first impression on him. A small, weak herbivore who pulled down the entire school's GPA's. He was also no good at sports, or anything for that matter. But he was quiet, and he didn't cause too much trouble, so Kyouya let him live.

A little while later, Gokudera Hayato entered the school. Kyouya thought he was another loud herbivore that hid dynamite and god knows what else in that uniform. Obviously, for discriminating the school uniform and the explosions that happened all over the school, Kyouya put him down as a troublemaker that would have to be disciplined should they ever cross paths. However, Gokudera Hayato brought up the GPA and made up for Sawada Tsunayoshi's failures, so Kyouya spared him for now. Although, he did notice that Gokudera Hayato seemed very attached to Sawada Tsunayoshi, though the smaller boy was rather reluctant. He also noticed a small child often tagging around with them, wearing a black suit and with a pet chameleon. Kyouya, despite his love of violence, did not like hitting women or children unless necessary, or if they were strong enough to take it. He had never met anyone like that besides Amaya, though.

And then Yamamoto Takashi had joined their little group. Kyouya knew of him, the star baseball player that gave the school sport teams a good rep. He was generally a good boy, despite his test scores. Kyouya tried to avoid hitting him as much as possible; a star player had to be in a good condition to play.

Though when he tried to commit suicide, Kyouya had gotten slightly nervous. It wasn't the death of Yamamoto Takashi that bothered him, oh no. It was the reputation of the school should a student die on Namimori Middle grounds. He had meant to go and stop Yamamoto Takashi from being such an herbivore, but when he had gotten there, everyone had already left. When he peered over the rooftop to the ground, he saw Yamamoto Takashi and Sawada Tsunayoshi laughing cheerfully together. Apparently it was just some prank, though admittedly Kyouya was not entirely sure why Sawada Tsunayoshi had suddenly stripped down to his boxers.

Then when he had actually had a face-to-face confrontation with the three… _that_ had been memorable.

When he had come across them in his Reception Room, he spoke to them in that cold way that he had become accustomed to. It was now pure instinct for him to speak coldly with a hint of malice. Sawada Tsunayoshi and Gokudera Hayato had been taken care of easily. Yamamoto Takashi had been a little more difficult, but nothing that Kyouya couldn't handle. He felt a small pang when he had kicked the baseball boy though. One of the reasons that he hadn't disciplined Yamamoto before was because he was a star baseball player that the school needed to uphold the reputation. Another reason was because Yamamoto Takashi secretly reminded Kyouya of Shirou, especially the hard-headed, good nature they both shared.

Then Sawada Tsunayoshi had suddenly stripped down to his boxers again and attacked him with surprising strength. Kyouya momentarily toyed with the idea of Sawada's clothes actually being weighted and stopping him from being as strong as he was now. Later on he would scrap the idea.

And then Kyouya had spotted the child that always followed Sawada Tsunayoshi's group around. Despite his dislike of hitting children, something told him that this child was different from any he had ever met. Kyouya attacked, and the baby retaliated. Kyouya had grown interested in the baby. He wasn't as strong as Amaya, perhaps, but the baby would make a good stepping stone for Kyouya's own strength.

Of course, the baby blew up his Reception Room afterwards with a bomb. Luckily Kyouya had dodged backwards and used his tonfa to block the blast. After looking around, he realized that they had disappeared.

He smirked. It seemed that things were going to be a little more interesting.

Now to call on someone to clean up this mess.

* * *

A month or two passed, and one day, Kyouya didn't come home until a week later. Amaya would have hit him, had Kyouya not been severely injured.

"What happened to you?" Amaya made tea and handed the prefect a cup. Kyouya sipped quietly and didn't answer. "Come on now, it's not something that you need to hide, is it?"

Kyouya looked down at his feet.

Amaya frowned and peered at his face. She gently rested her hand on his forehead. "Well, you aren't sick, so I guess that's not why you're clamming up. So the only other reason I can think is that you got beat down hard."

Kyouya flinched and scowled. "Did not," he muttered.

"You did, I'm pretty sure," before Kyouya knew what she was doing, Amaya had unbuttoned his dress shirt and pushed it aside. "Look, you're so badly injured I'm surprised you can stand."

Kyouya's face turned slightly pink and he quickly pulled his shirt together again. "Don't do that. And I'm fine."

"They look properly bandanged anyway," Amaya touched his chest gently. "You went to the hospital again? I could bandage you up myself, you know."

"I'd rather go to the hospital than be under your care, even for a simple cold like last time," Kyouya rebuttoned his shirt and stood up. He turned to leave when he felt Amaya catch him by the arm.

"Come on, Kyou-chan," her tone was soft and encouraging. "I care about you, even though you hate me. I want to know what happened to you."

Kyouya twitched and tried to move away, but Amaya's hand kept a firm grip on his sleeve.

"You should just tell her, you know ~"

Kyouya's head snapped up and his free hand went instinctively to his tonfa, before pausing. "Oh, Shirou, it's just you. When did you get here?"

Shirou gave a grin. "The door was open."

"And so?" Amaya pulled him down to sit on the couch again. "Tell us!"

Kyouya gave a tired sigh and crossed his legs. "Fine…"

And that's when Ran first knew that Kyouya had come in contact with the Vongola.

* * *

Another month or two later, Kyouya started to come home covered in blood. And this time, some of it was his own. A panicked Shirou sometimes had to drag the dark-haired boy home; he'd occasionally faint along the way from blood loss.

No matter how much Ran questioned, Kyouya would not answer. Even different forms of torture could not make him tell. Ran despaired.

And then one day, Kyouya packed his bags and said he was going on a trip.

"But you never leave Namimori," Shirou pointed out in mild surprise.

"I'm leaving now," Kyouya replied coolly and whistled to a small, fat canary that he had brought home with him a month ago.

"Hibari, Hibari," chirped the bird. Shirou had dubbed the little fluff ball 'Hibird,' and Kyouya hadn't argued. Hibird comfortably settled on Kyouya's shoulder and peeped contently.

Amaya sighed. "And who are you going with?"

"A mafia boss apparently named Bucking Horse Dino Chiavarone," Kyouya said dismissively. "He's an herbivore."

"… He must be pretty good if you're going on a training session with him," Amaya said. Kyouya scowled.

"… He's not too bad," he quickly muttered before standing up to leave. "I'll be back in a week or two. Watch over Namimori for me."

They watched him leave. Ran collasped on the sofa. "Fuck…" she cursed softly.

"What's wrong, Amaya-nee?" Shirou questioned. Amaya gave a sigh.

"Oh, I don't know… but even the Chiavarone is sticking their heads in to this buisiness… I wonder what's going on…"

"Well, it has to do with the mafia, right?" Shirou leaned back in to the couch that he was sitting on. "I think Kyouya can handle it."

"I can't help but worry over the stupid idiot," Amaya crossed her legs and scowled. "He's bound to kill himself one day."

"Can we not talk about such ominous things?" Shirou begged. Amaya gave a small smile.

"I guess… it's alright for now…"

* * *

It was at least five days before Kyouya came back home one night. Shirou, who had been working overtime, gave a cry of happiness and leapt to hug his friend. Kyouya quickly dodged out of the way and grabbed Shirou by the back of his collar to prevent him from falling and getting hurt.

It was his own special way of caring.

"You've gotten faster," remarked Amaya, who had been watching him with calculated eyes.

Kyouya's eyes were glittering. He dropped Shirou ("OW! Dammit Kyouya!"), and advanced on Amaya, tonfa in his hands. "Let's see how strong I am now, shall we?"

Amaya gave a feral grin. "Alright. Let's see. But let's get to the roof, I don't want to destroy my living space."

A few minutes later, Amaya and Kyouya were clashing together under the light of the moon, sparks flying. Shirou stayed by the wall, careful to not get in the way.

"Not bad," mused Amaya, blocking a tonfa strike from the right. "If it wasn't me, I'd probably have my arm broken."

"You will, soon enough," Kyouya swung at her head. Amaya ducked and lashed out with her left foot, catching Kyouya's leg by the ankle, meaning to trip him. Kyouya, however, did not lose his balance and instead used his free leg and slam in to Amaya's. She gave a wince and jumped backwards, balancing on one leg as she inspected the new bruising on her thigh.

"Seriously, not bad," Amaya applauded. "You've powered up quite a bit. You barely could injure me before."

Kyouya did not say anything and charged instead, though Amaya noted the small, triumphant grin on Kyouya's face as he spun to create a whirlwind of painful flashing metal. Amaya jumped straight up and forced her center of balance downwards to gain speed for a powerful air-kick. Kyouya very nearly had his ribs shattered. Lucky for him, he pulled back and managed to dodge at the last second.

"You've past level 1~" Amaya said lovingly in a sing-song voice. "Let's see if you can handle level 2~!"

Before Kyouya knew it, he was flat on his back with Amaya's harder-than-steel-nails at his throat. He gave an angry growl. "You were going easy on me this whole time?!"

"I've got years of experience on you Kyouya. I've learned that sometimes it's best to take things slowly, especially if it's enjoyable," she stood and offered a hand. Kyouya slapped it away and stood on his own accord.

"I will bite you to death one day," he informed her, "and take your position as the strongest."

"I look forward to it," she replied with a grin. "But the next time we fight, I hope that you'll show a little more spirit and be a little less composed. It's best when men have burning souls."

"Idiot," Kyouya scoffed and turned to walk away, but then Amaya pinned him down again, this time with her whole body. Kyouya squirmed.

"Not so fast, my cute apprentice. I want an explanation. What was is this training trip for? And… What's that?"

Kyouya quickly tried to hide the chain glittering around his neck, but Amaya was faster. She grabbed the chain and examined the 'charm' on it. It was half of a rather awkward looking ring.

Amaya suddenly felt sick. "This… isn't…"

"The Vongola Cloud Ring?" Shirou's face suddenly popped out of nowhere. Amaya almost jumped. The hair on the back of Kyouya's neck stood up, almost like a indignant cat, from surprise.

"… I'd normally ask how the hell you did that, but I'm more interested in knowing why you know what that is," Kyouya's voice was it's usual monotone.

"Hacked online," Shirou shrugged. "You won't believe this, but the Vongola Famiglia actually has a fucking **website**! And it's awesome! It's got super advanced security that won't let people in so easily There's even a sign-up sheet for those who want to join!"

"… If there's such great security, why is there a sign-up sheet?"

"It's a test, I think. If you can get on, the have the tech-knowledge to join. They've been looking for hackers lately~! I think I'll join…"

"WHAT?!" both Amaya and Kyouya whirled on Shirou. "No way!"

"Way, guys. WAY," Shirou looked pleased with himself. "I already filled out the applications. They're going to email me back sometime today!"

"But why are you joining? You can't kill a person, can you?" Amaya was looking genuinely worried.

"I don't have to kill. I just told you! I'm going to be a hacker and a information broker."

"You're part the mafia, you're going to have to kill eventually…"

"I'll deal with it when it comes. I think I can sidestep killing, the Vongola Nono looks like a nice old man…"

Both Amaya and Kyouya shared a look, one that said:

_He's an idiot, isn't he?_

_He should realize that just because someone looks nice doesn't mean they are. I mean, Nono's a mafia boss! And I know him, I fucking work for the guy!_

_Should we tell him…?_

_… Let him have his moment. He's too pitiful._

End conversation that really never happened.

"Well, let's see how good your hacking is then… Come to think of it, since when did you know how to hack?"

"My dad taught me!"

Amaya and Kyouya looked at each other again, before turning away. Amaya with a barely suppressed smile, Kyouya with the oddest desire to laugh.

"I see…"

"Yeah, that's… normal."

Amaya opened the door to the staircase leading downstairs. "Let's go…"

"Thank god," muttered Kyouya, before Amaya suddenly went, "AHH!"

"What's wrong, Amaya-nee?" Shirou was startled.

"You!" Amaya grabbed Kyouya and forced him against the wall. "You didn't tell me why you were made the Cloud Guardian!"

"Dammit, I was hoping you would have forgotten…" Kyouya almost sweat-dropped (note: ALMOST. HE NEVER ACTUALLY DOES).

"And so?" Amaya released his windpipe.

"Apparently I'm the best person for the job, according to the note that came with the ring," Kyouya rubbed his throat and dusted himself off. "That's just how it is."

"Do you want to be part of the Vongola?"

"No, but the baby and Sawada Tsunayoshi are. They… intrigue me a bit."

"Hm… the kid in the fedora and the 'whiny herbivore' that you mentioned before?" Shirou faked a ponderous expression. Amaya whapped him on the back of his head.

"Shut up, Shirou-kun," Amaya turned to Kyouya, who instinctively took a step back before silently cursing himself. He knew Amaya's mood swings and had learned to get away as fast as possible. Amaya sighed. "Kyou-chan, I know that you don't want to do this, but… are you going to?"

"…" Kyouya didn't answer at first, before finally saying, "Yes. It seems that things will be getting a little interesting from now on."

Amaya sighed again. "If you're sure…" she leaned forwards (they were the same height now) and kissed him lightly on the head. Shirou grinned and gave Kyouya a thumbs-up from behind her back. "I'm guessing that you want to be alone now. Come on, Shirou-kun."

They left, right before a slightly out-of-tune voice started singing. "Miiiidori, tanabiku. Namimori mo…"

"Ah…" Kyouya murmured. It was the bird again.

"Hibari! Hibari!" chirped Hibird who settled down on Kyouya's head. "Having fun? Having fun?"

"Fun?" Kyouya's tone was surprised, before he slid his eyes closed and gently rubbed Hibird's head with the tip of his finger. "Yeah… maybe that's it."

He stepped back up to the roof and gazed up at the dark night sky, filled with stars, mysteries, and endless possibilities.

"Maybe something fun is going to start soon."

* * *

For that last part with Hibird? I watched/listened/read a Reborn drama CD called "A Day's Observation of Hibari Kyouya," and it was inspired from there. I LOVED IT SO FUCKING MUCH, he was so cute to Hibird (and it turned out that he was Chairman before Sasagawa Ryohei came to school, so there is a possibility that he's older, but not too old to have a growth spurt with the rest of the Guardians)! Best part? HE ACTUALLY TAUGHT HIBIRD BY SINGING TO HIM!!!! Anybody want an analysis on the CD, they can email me. Normally I would put the link up, but Youtube deleted the videos... *cries in a corner*

*sniffle* Anyways, the next chapter should be up rather quickly, because it's going to be a little short, but hopefully not disappointing.

And for the record, when Kyouya came home, it was after the Storm's Ring Conflict. You remember that he never got hurt, so... yeah.

And I know the website part was totally random, but it will come up later so I wanted to introduce it now. Shirou... I'm getting a soft spot for my own OC character now XD.


	18. Skylark Arc FINAL PART: And Goodbyes

Final chapter of the Skylark Arc. God, I am so tired...

Like I said before, this chapter is going to be very short, but the next chapter will start the Decimo Arc. I hope you have enjoyed what you have read so far~!

**Title:**_ Memories Never Fade  
_**Chapter:**_Skylark Arc Part XIII: ... And Good-byes  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Action/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!! And there will be more!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_Four_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _Now Kyouya is fully the Cloud Guardian... and Ran must leave to train his new 'boss'._

* * *

Ran noted that the next night, Kyouya had stayed out for a rather long time and didn't get back home until three in the morning.

"What were you doing?" she had asked.

"Watching two herbivores fight over another pointless ring," he had replied as he heated the stove to make himself dinner.

"… Is there another fight tomorrow?"

"Yes."

"Are you going?"

"No."

Ran supposed that she would have to take his word for it.

* * *

The next day, the received a mail in front of their door. That was unusual. It was a bright yellow envelope. Examining it, Ran saw that it had an Arcobaleno seal on it. On the back was simply the name, _Hibari Kyouya_.

She tossed it to the prefect with a blank face. "It's for you."

He took out the contents and read the apparently very short message. He glanced up at her.

"I'm going to be back late tomorrow."

"At least eat something before you go."

She didn't know when she began to accept his role. All that she knew (but didn't realize) was that she had.

* * *

When Kyouya did come home, Ran relaxed a little. Kyouya didn't seem too badly injured, albeit the harsh burn on his leg, but he was sulking. That was never a good sign.

The worry that she had for him had increased, little by little. She gave a little sigh of relief though.

"So it's over? Since you won…"

"… I'm going to be out late tomorrow again."

Ran damned the world.

* * *

The next night, he didn't stagger through the door until five in the morning. Ran caught him before Kyouya could hit the floor. She examined the deep cuts in his arms.

"Knives?"

"Wires."

"I see."

She disinfected his wounds and bandaged them. Her touches were gentle. Unbeknownst to her, Kyouya's eyes softened when he looked at her tensed face.

"I'm fine," he told her. Ran looked up at him. Her eyes were filled with tears.

"… Did you win?"

He showed her the whole Ring of Cloud on his middle finger. She nodded and wiped her eyes.

"That's good," she smiled at him. One minute she was weeping her eyes out, the next she was beaming at him as if he was the kindest boy on earth.

Kyouya mildly wondered if Ran was pregnant.

* * *

As the Cloud Guardian, Kyouya would occasionally disappear from time to time during the next year. He would come home, either bruised and battered, or unharmed with a triumphant look in his eye. Ran learned to expect this. She would keep a first aid kit next to the front door, just in case.

And again, the days just rolled by…

Then, when Sawada Tsunayoshi somehow graduated from Namimori Middle, Ran was called to Italy to train the Vongola Decimo.

"So you're leaving," Kyouya said flatly. His eyes refused to meet hers.

"Aren't you glad?" her tone was mocking. "Now you don't have to deal with my anymore."

"I haven't gotten to kill you."

"That's one thing that you're going to have to live without," Ran herself was antsy. She didn't want to leave Kyouya behind.

"I'm selling this apartment when you leave then."

"Fine."

"And buying my own house. A proper one."

"Do as you please."

"I will," his tone was cold. "I am the so-called 'Cloud' after all."

"I liked you better before you got that ring."

Shirou had been moving his head back and forth as if he was watching a tennis rally. Now he held out his arms to Ran, who gave him a quick hug.

"Be safe, Amaya-nee," he said to her. "Give us a call!"

"I will," she smiled at him. Shirou motioned to Kyouya.

"C'mon! Let's do a group hug!"

"Uh, how about we NOT?" Ran pulled away. "I don't feel like hugging that anti-social freak."

Kyouya gave a disdainful sniff. Ran's heart was breaking.

"Well, I'm going to go now," Shirou started to leave. "Be nice, you two."

On the inside, Ran thanked Shirou. Now she and Kyouya were alone, and they were staring at that bag that held Ran's possessions.

"I guess I should leave..." Ran picked up the bag. "My flight leaves in two hours..."

"You aren't allowed to die," Kyouya's voice turned soft. "Not until I can kill you."

Ran let out a chuckle. "I know."

She walked past him and felt Kyouya suddenly grab her shirt before quickly letting go. Ran turned to smile at him, but he didn't return the smile.

"Good-bye," she leaned forwards and kissed him firmly on the mouth. Kyouya was the same height so it was easier than it had been the first time. He didn't pull away, nor did he return the kiss. Ran didn't care.

"See you around…"

Kyouya was left alone in his apartment. He sighed, sat down on the couch and began to read his book, before shutting it and going out to patrol the town.

It was just too damn quiet.

* * *

OMFG, I felt like crying when I wrote this T_T. I was screaming in my mind, _HIBARI YOU IDIOT, HUG HER! SHE'S SAD!_ but then, well, I wrote this, and well... that's Hibari for you.

Next arc is the Decimo Arc. Thank you for those who have read this far.


	19. Decimo Arc I: A New Home Tutor

And the Decimo Arc begins! Though admittedly, the song section is longer than the chapter...

Aside from this though, I'm just going to have to say, the new songs that are out are pretty hot XD. Out of all of them, Tsuna's (_Hitotsu Dake_) sounds the best, I think, though I like Yamamoto's (_Ashita no Mukatte_) and Gokudera's (_Hashire_). Hibari's song (_Horizon_) is a little... erm, stranger that usual. I love it, but for some reason, something about it sounds odd... I think it's because Kondo Takashi changed the way he spoke Hibari's voice. And the syllables are sort of choppy, but then they get smoother in the middle and it sounds better. Ryohei's song (_Look Up At the Sunny Sky_) is quite enjoyable~! But as for I-Pin&Lambo's, and Kyoko&Haru's... I don't like them that much. I-Pin and Lambo's song (_Songs Make Me Happy!_) sounds like it's been done before. And Kyoko&Haru's song (_JUMP!_) is kinda… shrill. Haru especially.

On a better note, I found that_ Yakusoku No Basho De Revised_ version, with Bianchi, Kusakabe, TYL Fuuta, Basil, Chrome, Spanner, Shouichi, Lal Mirch, and Giannini singing with the Guardians… and other girls. It sounds pretty good! They rewrote some of the song lyrics, and had different instruments, but other than that, the melody was pretty much the same. I know I should get on with the story, but I can't resist adding this last bit here…

Lal Mirch: Girl, you're gorgeous as always.

Bianchi: Her voice is also sort of shrill and dramatic, but in a good way, not a bad way.

TYL Fuuta: HIS VOICE IS SO CUTE. PERIOD.

Giannini (I think that's how you spell it): His voice is sort of… boastful, I guess would be the best word…

Kusakabe: His voice is officially the DEEPEST in KHR. Scared me!

Shouichi: Remember his original single, No Control? My friends and I all said that he was trying to hard to have a deep voice. In this song, however, it sounds more natural, and rather endearing (*hearts*).

Spanner: He sings just like I thought he would, but then again, he and TYL Lambo are voiced by the same character…

Chrome: HER VOICE IS ALSO CUTE. And it's gotten a little stronger and louder than in Setsuna No Kioku.

Basil: … Er, what can I say about Basil? I just think he needs a little more practice in singing in Japanese… but it's actually kind of cute. I can just imagine him XD.

More details on the bottom, but please read my story first.

**Title:**_ Memories Never Fade  
_**Chapter: **_Decimo Arc Part I: A New Home Tutor  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Action/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!! And there will be more!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_Four_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _Ran isn't sure what to expect from Italy, or from the person that she's supposed to train. But when they meet, Ran gets a shock..._

* * *

One flight later, Ran stood in front of the enormous Vongola Castle. The place was beautiful, Ran admitted, but already she missed the Japanese style of home.

"Welcome, Suzuki-sama," a man bowed to her. "Please, enjoy your stay here."

"Yes," Ran replied quietly, allowing the man to pick up her bags and take her to her room. When she was left alone, she flopped down on to the sheets and gave a sigh. "Kyou-chan…" she murmured, picking up her cellphone and flipping it open.

_I'm lonely…_

She decided to text him. And then she hoped that Kyouya knew how to open his inbox.

**Kyou-chan**, she typed in, **I'm here in Italy already… if you don't want the café, then you can give Shirou ownership. I'm sure he has a few siblings old enough to work. It'll be better that way, because they don't have to get paid XD.**

**Italy is pretty, but I miss Japan. I miss you too. We should visit each other, ne~!**

**Love you. Take care of yourself, and Namimori. Kisses!**

She sent it and shut off the phone. Opening her suitcase, she filled her new closet and rearranged the furniture to her liking.

When she was done that, it was still too early to go out, and Ran felt to lazy to leave. She decided to sleep. The Vongola had given her first class on the plane, but it would be nice if she could sleep on a real bed.

She chose her favorite nightwear (red silk spaghetti-strap top and matching pajama shorts) and snuggled down in to the covers. Thinking about it, she grabbed a doll she had made in perfect likeness of Kyouya. It may have sounded a little creepy, but the doll's hair was real hair – Kyouya's hair.

She sniffed the doll's head contently. _It smells just like him…_

Ran cuddled the doll and drifted away, wishing that she could be back in Japan.

* * *

"Good morning, Miss Suzuki," a gentle voice in Italian said.

"Mmm?" Ran sat up and rubbed her eyes tiredly and replied in the same language. "Good morning…"

"Miss Suzuki, here is breakfast. Would you like to eat?"

"Yes please," she murmured, looking up at the person who had spoken. It was a woman, with pretty, light orange hair and glasses. "Who are you?"

"My name is Oregano," the woman replied, bowing slightly. "I am a member of CEDEF and am assigned to be your guide for today."

"No formalities, please," Ran waved her hand wearily, "It's way too early in the morning for that stuff. What's for breakfast?"

Oregano wheeled in a cart, immediately filling Ran's room with delicious smells. "We have prepared many types of food for you, Miss Suzuki."

"Please, just Aoi will do," Ran sighed, finding it quite irritating that she had to go by so many aliases. Maybe she should have just stuck to Amaya. She felt a pang for Kyouya.

Oregano inclined her head, a wry smile on her pretty face. "If you say so, Miss Aoi."

Ran sighed and reached for a scone. Buttering it, she glanced up at Oregano. "You can have some too, you know?"

"I – I really shouldn't Miss – " her stomach cut her off. Oregano turned pink.

"Eat," Ran said it sharply in a tone that Oregano did not dare disobey. The older (or so it seemed) woman shyly took a piece of toast and began to spread marmalade on it.

"Thank you."

"I'm not some high and mighty princess. You can treat me like a normal person," Ran bit in to her scone and lazily licked away the crumbs on her lips.

Oregano smiled. "I suppose I shouldn't since you are younger than me – "

_That's what you think, _Ran thought.

" – but I do hold a high respect for you. Being able to train Decimo-sama…" Oregano's eyes were shining with admiration. "You must be very strong. And you're so young!"

Ran snorted. "Age doesn't matter, as long as you have the potential," she poured herself a cup of Earl Gray. "What about you? Are you strong?"

"Ah, no!" Oregano really blushed this time. "I am very weak compared to Master and my fellow students under him. I really am not special…"

"Hmm…" under Ran's eyes, the _actual_ older woman had to admit that she was right. Oregano could be good, but she could never be 'special.' Like Kyouya. Come to think of it… "Hey, how strong is the Vongola Decimo?"

Oregano looked surprised from the sudden change in subject, but she answered. "He's quite strong when shot with a special bullet, but normally…" Oregano hesitated. "Vongola Decimo is rather weak physically and mentally otherwise. And he keeps claiming that he doesn't want to be the boss. In fact, if you took away the Vongola blood and Hyper Intuition, he would be a nobody.

Ran raised her eyebrows. "A nobody…? Rather interesting…"

To tell the truth, she wasn't that surprised. From what she saw, the Vongola had started out as a noble Famiglia, but then when Segundo took over, it became a dark world. Giotto (Ran still flushed at the thought of him) had always intended for the family to be good…

"Aren't there any other candidates?"

"Well… Timeteo-sama's three sons died… and his adopted son is no longer eligeble for inheritance. But it should be alright. Decimo-sama is the great-great-great-grandson of Vongola Primo-sama after all.

Ran's ears perked at that. "Really…" her smile became amused. Perhaps it wouldn't be so bad… "When is he arriving?"

"Ahh, he should be coming today actually, but I'm not sure – "

"HIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!"

A loud, high-pitched shriek echoed through the Vongola Castle. Ran winced. "What was that?"

"I believe that is Decimo-sama," Oregano briskly put down her teacup and stood. "We should go greet him."

_That was the Decimo?_ Ran wasn't quite sure of what this person would be like… It seemed to be a very feminine person though, to be male and scream like that without a thought to personal dignity…

_… A homosexual?_

* * *

"REBORN!!! NOOOO!!! I DON'T WANT TO BE THE BOSS!!! I DON'T WANT TO GO TO A MAFIA SCHOOL!!! DAD!!! MAKE HIM STOP!!!"

Ran covered her ears and wrinkled her nose in distaste. This person was really shrill.

When Oregano and Ran entered the main hall, Ran stopped dead and stared at the sight in front of her.

A baby in a mafia suit was currently shooting bullets at a young boy's feet. The boy had his back to Ran, so she couldn't see his face. The boy was quickly trying to dodge the bullets, having his feet eventually end up in a tangled mess and making him fall. "HIIII!!"

A middle-aged, well built man with blond hair gave a jolly laugh. "Don't worry Tsuna! I went to school there too! And look how I turned out!"

"THAT'S WHAT I'M WORRIED ABOUT!!!" the boy finally turned around and Ran's jaw dropped. That face, that hair…

"Giotto!"

"HIII?!" screeched Tsuna as the mysterious girl from behind crushed him in a bone breaking hug.

"Giotto!" she sobbed and buried her face in his shoulder.

"Aoi-san!" Oregano switched to Japanese and hurried forward, pulling Ran off of Tsuna. "Stop! That isn't Primo-sama!"

Ran was panting, her eyes fixed on the panicked boy in front of her.

"Reborn! Who's that?!"

"That's your new tutor," Reborn tipped his fedora in Ran's direction. "I'm Reborn, and that's Dame Tsuna, who'll be in your care for a while. Take good care of him; he's an idiot."

Ran breathed through her nose and looked Tsuna carefully over. Now that her mind was clear and awake, she saw that he wasn't Giotto, but it was close. His features were softer, and his eyes were less mature and chocolate-colored. His hair was almost the same as Giotto's, only it was brown instead of blond. And he was small. Smaller than her. It was sort of cute, actually…

"Yes," Ran straightened and breathed. "I'm sorry, Giotto-sama… I mean, Sawada Tsunayoshi."

"Hahaha!" Sawada Iemitsu gave a boisterious laugh and wrapped his arm around Tsuna's shoulders. "He does look like his ancestor, doesn't he? That's our Sawada blood for you! But he looks more like his mother than anything, especially his girlish features!"

"DAD!" Tsuna exploded and shoved him away. "THAT'S NOT SOMETHING TO BRAG ABOUT!! THAT'S STUPID!!!"

Ran watched as Iemitsu's eyes watered up and he turned around to sob. "After all I've done for you, you go and yell at me like that!"

"Apologize to your father, Dame Tsuna," Reborn pointed a gun at him. Tsuna gave a shriek of terror.

"HIIIIII!!!"

"Master," Oregano went to comfort Iemitsu. "There, there, Master…"

"My cute little son, where did I go wrong…"

"WHEN YOU HIRED REBORN, THAT'S WHEN!!!!"

"Correction. The Kyuudaime gave me this job and I took it willingly. Get your facts straight, stupid Tsuna."

"HIIIII!!! Reborn! Put the gun away!"

Ran sweat-dropped. She wondered if this kid could make the cut…

… He was pretty cute though… in a kicked puppy sort of way. He definitely got kicked a lot already.

"HIIIII!!! Reborn, STOP!!!"

… Ran suddenly had a desire for aspirin.

* * *

"What's with you? I'm not going to hurt you. Yet," she added under her breath. Tsuna peeked up at her, and then gulped and looked back down. "Hey…"

She seized his chin and forcefully turned his head. "Look at me when I'm talking to you."

"HII!! Y-Yes ma'am!" Tsuna was quivering like a mass of jelly. Ran sighed and released him.

"Look…" she sat down on the bench, beside him. They were out in the garden. The flowers were beautiful, but Tsuna was too terrified to admire them. "Why are you so afraid of me?"

Tsuna looked at her, and spoke heisitantly. "W-Well… It's just that, you're going to be my new tutor, and that means Reborn wasn't up to scratch, so… a-are you stronger than Reborn?"

"Oh," Ran relaxed and leaned back against the bench. "Who knows?"

"Who knows?" Tsuna was confused about her answer. "What do you mean who knows?"

"All I know is that the Vongola put you under my care for now. I don't think it has to do with strength or not. Besides, I was under the impression that I'm suppose to teach you academics."

_… But if I'm right about the Arcobaleno… maybe I'm little stronger after all. I'm still older…_

"Oh," Tsuna's voice didn't tremble as much now. "Th-That's good. But I'm still not good at academics at all…"

"Pffft, anybody can be smart," Ran yawned. "It takes a rare person to be completely dimwitted."

"… Is that supposed to make me feel better?"

"No, it's supposed to degrade you," Ran was sleepy. Maybe the jet lag was catching up. She shifted her head so that it was laying on Tsuna's shoulder.

"HIIIII!!! What are you doing?"

"Be my pillow for a bit. Please shut up."

Tsuna sat stock still as Ran's breathing turned even and slow. Tsuna fidgited.

_She's… kinda pretty. She looks a little like Kyoko-chan, just older…_

* * *

"Idiot!" Ran punched Tsuna after he translated an English question wrong. "It's 'I am', not 'I is,'! God, you are hopeless!"

_I take it back,_ Tsuna gingerly felt his bloody nose. _Not cute. Not cute at all._

* * *

Hmmm. Hmmm. Hmmmmmmmmm.

Not the best introduction, but I think it will get better after a couple chapters, once I get the plot going.

More about the Yakusoku Basho De Revised song. Please email me for the download links, but I can at least put up the lyrics and translation, cause I wanted to share it... THEY DO NOT BELONG TO ME. THEY BELONG TO XALPHINE'S LIVEJOURNAL. (well, er, part of the translation belongs to me since I corrected some parts...)

Gokudera:  
**Kono sora wa doko he, hiro ga tei iru no.  
Kono michi wa doko he, tsuzu ii te iru no.**  
_This starts spreading somewhere.  
I'll continue this path to somewhere._

Yamamoto:  
**Kino yori asuga, tooku ni mietemo,  
Yakusoku no basho de, kimi ga matte iru.**  
_Compared to yesterday, tomorrow seems further away,  
But I'll still wait for you in the Promised Land._

Tsuna:  
**Hitori de wa, nani mo dekinai,  
Boku dakedo, kimi wo mamori taikara,  
**_I can't do anything when I'm alone,  
But because I want to protect you,_

Hibari:  
**Tsuyoku naru, sonna omoi ga,  
Yuuki ataete kureru.**  
_The thoughts of becoming stronger,  
Gives me courage._

Ryohei:  
**Hitori de wa, nani mo dekinai,  
Bokura demo, minna o mamoru tame,**  
_I can't do anything when I'm alone,  
But in order to protect everyone,_

Mukuro:  
**Tsuyoku naru, sonna omoi ga,  
Chikara wo hakoun dekuru.**  
_The thoughts of become stronger,  
Carrying a power in it._

Kyoko:  
**Sabishi kute namida, koubosu himo atta.  
Kuyashi kute namida, tomoranagata.**  
_Tears of lonliness, they will one day be shed.  
Tears of regret can not be stopped._

Haru:  
**Kagami ni** **utsuu ta, ano hino jibun ni,  
Yakusoku no basho de, mune o hareru yo ni.**  
_Since that day I reflected in the mirror,  
In the Promised Land, this heart will be waiting for you._

Lambo:  
**Ippozutsu, mae ni susumou,  
Sono tabi ni, chiren* ga matta itemo.  
**_Yes, we will go forwards,  
The limits of time await us._

I-Pin:  
**Yuri kokeba, sasaete kureru,  
Nakama ga genki kureru.**  
_If I can go forward, I will help others,  
And give my friends happiness._

Reborn:  
**Ippozutsu, mae ni susumou,  
Nando demo, tachiko katte ikeru.**  
_Yes, we will go forwards,  
It doesn't matter how many times, we'll stand up again._

Lal Mirch (aha!):  
**Itsudatte, meni wa mienai,  
Ai ni mamorare teiru.**  
_Whenever something can not be seen in our eyes,  
I'll protect you with love._

Bianchi:  
**Mayottemo, machigattemo ii.**  
_Even if we lose our way by mistake, it's okay._

TYL Fuuta:  
**Kujikenai koto, akiramenai koto.**  
_Don't be discouraged by it, don't lose to it._

Giannini:  
**Takusan no, kizuna, omoide wa,  
**_Remember, our bond is more than enough,_

Kusakabe:  
**Meniwa mienai houseki.**  
_See it as a precious thing._

Shouichi:  
**Hoho e ni mo, makigao mo zenbu,  
**_It will always show the way,_

Spanner:  
**Dakishimete yuku, nori koete yuku,  
**_Hold it close; go to where the voice is,_

**Chrome:  
Hateshinai, yume no, michishirube,  
**_To that endless dream,_

Basil:  
**Susumu bokura wa, sou, FAMILY.**  
_Going onwards with this family._

Tsuna:  
**Kono kaze wa doko he, tsuta watte yukuno?  
Kono hoshi wa doko he, megutte yukuno?**  
_What is the wind trying to tell us?  
What do the stars want to say?_

Reborn:  
**Donna ashita demo, tashikameni yukou,  
Ima no boku ni datte, kimi ga imi ga aru.**  
_No matter what kind of tomorrow comes,  
I'll go on, because I believe you're the truth._

Kyoko:  
**Ano koro no, mishiranu basho ni,**  
_This time, in that hiding place,_

Haru:  
**Tadoritsuki, kimi to warai atteru.**  
_You will come and laugh next to me._

TYL I-Pin:  
**Buki you ni, kowashite yume mo,**  
_Even if that broken dream is useless,_

Kyoko, Haru, TYL I-Pin, Bianchi, Lal Mirch:  
**Kokoro ni hana o sakasu.**  
_It will flourish in your heart._

Mukuro:  
**Utsuro no asa mo,**  
_Even in this empty morning,_

Hibari:  
**Kodokuna hibi mo,**  
_Even if it breaks this solitude,_

Yamamoto:  
**Buanna doki mo,**  
_Even with this rate of palpitaion,_

TYL Lambo:  
**Nemurenai yoru mo,**  
_Even if I don't sleep at night,_

Gokudera:  
**Uzumaku kimochi,  
**_In a flurry of emotions,_

Ryohei:  
**Atsuku no yasaba,**  
_Even if I become barren,_

Hyper Dying Will! Tsuna:  
**Tsuyoi kakugo ga tomoru.  
**_The strong will of flame will be ignited._

Everyone:  
**Kokoro kara, arigatou ieru,  
Sonna hi ga kuru, shinjite yukou.  
Kono mune ni, yume ga, aru kagiri,  
Bokura no tabi wa tsuzukuyo.**  
_From this heart, I said thank you,  
For I believe that tomorrow will soon be here.  
As long as there are still dreams,  
I'll keep going forward._

**Oozora ni, te ogazaseba hora,  
Hanarete itemo, te totetsu nageru.  
Mamori tai, egao, mabushi sani,  
Kagayaku kimi wa, sou FAMILY.**  
_Extend your hand to the sky, and look,  
Even when we're seperated, we're connected hand in hand.  
We'll protect that shining smile,  
Because you are, that's right, family._

**Mayottemo, machigattemo ii.  
Kujikenai koto, akiramenai koto,.  
Takusan no, kizuna, omoide wa,  
Meniwa mienai houseki.**  
_Even if we lose our way by mistake, it's okay.  
Don't be discouraged by it, don't lose to it.  
Remember, our bond is more than enough,  
See it as a precious thing._

**Hoho e ni mo, makigao mo zenbu,  
dakishimete yuku, nori koete yuku.  
Hateshinai, yume no, michishirube,  
Susumu bokura wa (Lambo: Ichi, ni, san!)  
Sou, FAMILY.  
**_It will always show the way,  
Hold it close, go to where the voice is.  
To that endless dream,  
Going onwards with this (Lambo: One, two, three!)  
Family._

*The lyrics say 'shiren', as in trial, but in the song, Lambo says 'chiren', like how he does in the anime.

Such a lovely song, don't you agree? *hearts* I know that this is a pointless share and half of you probably heard it already, but I just really wanted to share this.


	20. Decimo Arc II: To Learn About Each Other

Hello, how have all of you been~?

Christmas is almost here and I've had almost no time, with midterms and all. And then I have to go on vacation with my family... I hate plane rides.

But I'll bring my laptop and type up chapters when I get the time! Who knows? Maybe you'll get a three-chapter release when I get back, or more! XD

Let's stick with one for now, but by the end of the trip, I'll definitely have more than one chapter to post... And maybe a few requested oneshots, side stories and other things as well...

**Title:** _Memories Never Fade  
_**Chapter: **_Decimo Arc Part II: To Learn About Each Other  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Action/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!! And there will be more!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_Four_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _Tsuna finds Ran intriguing, but for some reason, when she happily receives a mail from Kyouya, his heart feels strange...?!_

* * *

"What a nice day…" Tsuna yawned and rolled over. "Mm… is Mom cooking pancakes…?"

"Oi, you, wake up."

"HII!" Tsuna sat up immediately. "I'M SORRY REBORN!!! DON'T KILL ME!!!"

"… Honey, do I look like a talking baby to you?"

Tsuna cracked open his eyes and looked up to see Ran's face. "A-Ah, Suzuki-san…"

"Aoi is fine," Ran wheeled in a cart similar to the one Oregano had given her yesterday. "Here, there's a lot to eat."

Tsuna's eyes wandered over the scones, pancakes, sweet breads, bacon, sausage, and many other things that made his mouth water. "Thank you. Do you want some?"

"Certainly," Ran sat down on his bed and picked up a blueberry muffin. The top was delicately sprinkled with sugar. Tsuna selected one as well and took a big bite. Chunks of muffin and sugar rolled down his chin and on to his pajamas.

"Ah!" he tried to catch the crumbs and managed to get a few of them.

"Messy," Ran gently rebuked and plucked up the crumbs in several, fluid motions.

"S-Sorry," Tsuna murmured.

"Honestly," Ran picked up a napkin in one hand and took Tsuna's chin in the other, "are all boys this messy?" her tone was light and teasing. She gently wiped the crumbs away and brought him closer to inspect him. "Did I get all of them…?"

Tsuna's face turned red. Her face was very close, close enough to see all her individual eyelashes. "Ehhh…"

"Hmm?" Ran tilted her head up so that her breath would blow over Tsuna's face. Without knowing the reason why, Tsuna's eyes instinctively shut.

Ran raised her eyebrows in surprise and gave a quiet sigh of laughter before pulling away. "Open your eyes, silly."

Tsuna's eyes popped open and his face turned red again. Ran wasn't in front of him anymore. Instead, she was heading out the door, a smirk on her lips.

"Really, what did you want me to do?"

"EHHHH!!!" Tsuna's face turned scarlet. "I'm sorry!"

"Don't apologize. I think it's cute."

"Eh…" Tsuna's face blush faded to a light pink. Ran chuckled.

"Silly," she murmured, and left.

Tsuna stared after her for a little while longer, before slapping himself in the face and screaming in to his pillow.

_W-What WAS that?!_

Tsuna gave an unhappy groan and rolled over to look up at the ceiling. _I closed my eyes as if we were going to kiss! Why did I do something so stupid! I have Kyoko-chan!_

… _Er, at least, I like Kyoko-chan._

* * *

Outside of the room, Ran was thinking almost the same thing.

_I wonder why I almost actually did kiss him…_ Ran tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. _It's not like he's Giotto, even though they look pretty similar…_

_And Kyou-chan…_

* * *

Tsuna was still lying on his bed before he suddenly heard a loud buzzing noise that made him jump and squeal with fright. Looking frantically around, he saw a black cellphone that looked oddly familiar…

_Ah, it must be Aoi-san's cellphone… but it looks like Hibari-san's… _

_I hope she has a better taste in ringtones…_

The phone stopped vibrating. Tsuna saw that Aoi had gotten 1 new text message.

Without particularly thinking about it, he opened it and read the message, getting the shock of his life.

**Hey. I sold the apartment. Shirou took over the café.**

**You aren't allowed to die until I bite you to death.**

**… It's been quiet without you around. Hurry up and finish your business over there and come back.**

**Kyouya.**

_It's Hibari-san!_ Tsuna's mind was reeling. _Aoi-san knows Hibari-san? And… he signed it 'Kyouya'! Uwaaaaah, what do I do now?!_

* * *

"Where is it?!" Ran rummaged through her bag fruitlessly. "I swear, I had my cell with me…"

"U-Um…"

Ran turned around to see Tsuna standing there, holding her black cellphone in his hand. "This is yours, right?"

"Yes, thank you," Ran took the phone back and flipped it open. She saw the new message and frowned. "It's been read…"

"I'm sorry!" Tsuna's face was once more scarlet. "I didn't mean to intrude on your privacy! B-But, I just sort of did it… instinctively, if you know what I mean…"

Ran just gave him a hard stare, then sighed. "Alright alright, just don't do it again, okay?"

She pressed the OK button on her cellphone and started to read the short text. A soft smile slowly bloomed on her face, making Tsuna stare.

_She… She really is pretty…_

"Um, I was wondering… how do you know Hibari-san?"

"Hmm?" Ran glanced up. "Ahhh… he's sort of like my little brother. We're not related though."

"Ehhh?! So Aoi-san has known Hibari-san since he was young?"

"Yep!" Tsuna noticed that Ran's eyes lit up and positively glowed at the thought of her precious Kyouya. "He's very special to me."

For some reason, a small stab hit Tsuna in the heart, though he didn't know what it was. "I… I see."

"How well do you know Kyou-chan?"

_KYOU-CHAN?!_

"Um, not very well…"

"That's not good. A Boss should know all of his Guardians like the back of his hand."

"I told you before, I'm not going to be a mafia boss!"

Ran lightly clicked her tongue in a rebuking way. "Don't be like that. You're going to be the Boss, whether you like it or not. And judging by your reaction, I'm guessing, 'not'."

"OF COURSE NOT!!!" Tsuna half screamed. "I don't want to be a mafia boss! I don't want to kill people! I don't want my friends getting hurt!"

Ran's eyes momentarily widened before she smiled. "I see. Maybe you're a little more like the Primo than I thought. He didn't want to be a Boss either."

Tsuna's panic momentarily cooled. "Really? He didn't?"

"Well, not exactly," Ran sat down on her bed and gestured for Tsuna to sit somewhere. He picked a cream colored armchair that was next to the bed. "Giotto-sama hadn't intended to make an evil mafia. Secondo was the one who did that. Giotto-sama originally wanted to make a mafia like the Chiavorone. You know them of course…"

"I do," Tsuna remembered Dino's laughter and clumsiness. He wondered if he would see Dino around the Vongola Castle.

"Well, the Chiavorone is a peaceful mafia, right? They still need to use weapons, just in case, but they're all good people who care about the citizens in their hometown, right?"

"A-Ah…" Tsuna knew that was true.

"That's the sort of ideal Giotto-sama had. Of course… it didn't come true after Secondo battled him for the Vongola throne and forced Giotto-sama in to hiding," a dark scowl crossed Ran's face. "Giotto-sama had gotten seriously wounded and was forced to come to Japan in secret… He lived there for the rest of his life and married a Japanese woman. I believe he had two sons and a daughter…?" Ran's expression turned thoughtful. "The youngest son passed away from an illness and the daughter never married, so you're the great-great-(and so on?) grandson of the first son of Giotto-sama."

"Hmm…" Tsuna tilted his head. "Who was Vongola Primo's wife then?"

Ran's face turned hard again and she looked out the window. "… I don't know who your great-great-great grandmother was, I could care less," she said brusquely. "I… hate that woman."

_… Aoi-san?_ thought Tsuna, not understanding the fury on her face. _Hm?_ _I didn't see it before, but… _

_We kind of look alike?_

* * *

Sort of abrupt, but I hope it'll go along more smoothly later...

I'm going on vacation for Christmas break. I'll miss you all!

Plz review as usual!

Another side note...

CHROME AND MUKURO'S SONGS ARE OUT!!!! THEY ARE BEAUTIFUL!!! XDDDD


	21. Decimo Mini Arc: Dear Diary Part I

Well, I'm back from vacation.

I've got another chapter to post, but I think I'll do that tomorrow, because I want feedback for this individual chapter too.

I know that it is sudden, but starting know is a mini arc. A short story part of a bigger story that goes together. Something like that anyway.

**Title:** _Memories Never Fade  
_**Chapter: **_Decimo Mini Arc: Dear Diary Part I  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Action/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!! And there will be more!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_I'm thinking seven now..._  
**The Most Main Characters:**_Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _Vongola Primo has very interesting contraptions. Including a huge underground hideaway for personal uses. And of course, Tsuna gets half terrified out of his wits in the beginning._

* * *

**Dear Diary,**

**I don't even know why I'm writing in you, but Reborn told me to keep a diary/journal about my daily ventures, so here I am. I'm kind of scared right now…**

**Aoi-san is really pretty, but she's secretive and she doesn't like it when I ask questions about her. But, when I asked her about Hibari-san, her eyes lit up and she seems to love talking about him. She told me his likes, his dislikes (most of which I already knew), and little stories of him in the past. When I asked about the cellphones, she said that they had gone out together to buy matching ones. Apparently they used to live together, and Aoi-san used to train Hibari-san. Hiii… I guess she's really super strong after all, if Hibari-san respects and obeys her. I wonder if they're dating… wait, why do I care?**

**When I asked about Vongola Primo (s-should I call him 'grandfather?'), however, she would give me a hard stare and turn to walk away. I was really confused at this. Why did she seem to adore him, but wouldn't talk about him? When I asked her this, she slapped me. Really hard. My cheek still stings. **

**I think that I'll search the library for some books about Von – *crossed out* – er, Grandfather. Since this is the Vongola Castle, there should be something about him, right?**

**… Not that I want to become a mafia boss or anything! This is just pure curiosity! I swear!**

**… Great, I'm swearing my innocence to a book. Have I gone crazy?**

* * *

The library was a very large room with mazes formed from shelves. Several computers, the newest models, were on polished mahogany desks out front. There were comfortable chairs everywhere, for readers to recline in and enjoy.

Tsuna wandered through the library, trying to locate a book on his ancestor. But every time he found a likely book, he would open it, frown, turn it sideways, and then give a yell of frustration and bang his head down on the desk.

This repeated several times. After only eight books, Tsuna had a very sizeable lump on his forehead. Why? Because ALL THE DAMN BOOKS WERE IN ITALIAN.

But really, Tsuna, it's not the books' fault…

He realized that a little later. "Why didn't I realize…" he whined. But then again, Giotto had traveled to Japan. So maybe there was something in Japanese…? A small hope, but a hope nonetheless. He decided to search in the further back shelves. There had to be SOMETHING, at least.

Tsuna scanned the shelves. There were a couple books with no titles, but then those books would be in some other foreign language that he didn't understand. One that he opened was immediately snapped shut and pushed back on to the bookshelf with a blush.

… Honestly, who expected porn in the library?

He reached the very back, his earlier hopes fading. He skimmed over the spines of each book, looking at the titles and trying to find something that he could recognize…

And of course, he found nothing. Tsuna gave an exasperated scream of frustration and smashed his head in to a wall space between two of the shelves.

The wall space opened up and Tsuna fell face-first in to a secret passageway.

"… What the hell?" Tsuna picked himself off and looked around. "A tunnel?"

The tunnel was short and narrow. Only someone as small as Tsuna would have no problems moving around.

Yes, although Tsuna is currently sixteen, he is still very small and has only grown five centimeters in two years, while Yamamoto hit another growth spurt and now towered over everybody. Anyways, back to the point.

Tsuna didn't want to go down the tunnel. It was very dark, and Tsuna could feel cobwebs brushing over his face. "I-I'll just pretend I didn't find this place and leave now…" he muttered and turned back to the library…

Only to find that the entrance was now sealed shut.

"Wha?! HIIII!!" Tsuna flung himself on to the wall and banged on it. "No way! When did this close?!" he rummaged around his pockets. "I don't have my pills with me!"

Tsuna gulped and turned around slowly. The tunnel now looked like the inside of a monster's mouth, ready to swallow him whole…

"HIIIIIIII!!!!" he screamed loudly at his own fears. He sat down and covered his head with his hands. "What do I do? What do I do? WHAT DO I DO?!" he wailed.

He felt something cold brush his temple. He gave a huge jump and frantically clawed at the side of his head, only to realize that the cold was his ring.

The Vongola Sky Ring… proof as the next successor to the Vongola. Tsuna remembered back a year ago, when Dino and Reborn had come to talk to him…

* * *

**_~Flashback~_**

**_"Oi, Dame-Tsuna, did you know that you can make Dying Will Flames come out of the Vongola Ring?" Reborn bluntly threw a question at him one day._**

**_"Eh? You can? How?" Tsuna asked curiously. Reborn gave him a kick on the head. "OW!"_**

**_"Baka Tsuna. Shouldn't you have figured that out? It's not an ordinary ring."_**

**_Dino, who was there at the time, grinned. "I've already taught Kyouya how to do it a couple days back. He's gotten really good at it."_**

**_"All the rings can do it?"_**

**_"Yeah. Kyouya's Flames are purple though. We haven't discovered exactly why yet, but we think it may have something to do with him being the Cloud Guardian."_**

**_"T-Then what about me?"_**

**_"Your Flames are orange, so we're guessing orange means Sky, Kyouya's are probably Cloud, and we're trying to figure out the rest."_**

**_"I see…" Tsuna looked down at the ring on his hand. "But how do I make Dying Will Flames come out of it?"_**

**_"Well, I told Kyouya that the secret to making Dying Will Flames was 'to be pissed off,'" Dino looked sheepish, "but that's only for Kyouya, since he turns 'being pissed off' into 'resolution.' It's resolution that powers the Dying Will Flames."_**

**_"How does that work?"_**

**_"Think of it this way, Baka Tsuna. When you're in normal Dying Will mode, you want to do something really badly, right? That sums up resolution."_**

**_"R-Reborn…" Dino sweat-dropped. "Don't you think he needs a little more clarification?"_**

**_"Don't bother. Dame Tsuna is so stupid anyway, that even if we tell him, he won't understand it."_**

**_"Reborn!" _**

**_"…"_**

**_"… Okay, so that's true, but – "_**

**_"DINO-SAN!!! I thought you were on my side!"_**

**_"That's not the point, Tsuna. The point is that if you have the resolution, you can light the flames on your ring."_**

**_"But what's the point?"_**

**_Dino frowned and leaned back in Tsuna's desk chair. "Well… Let's say that you'll probably need it in the future."_**

**_"Eh…?"_**

**_~End Flashback~_**

* * *

Tsuna's face relaxed a little at that memory. After that, he had talked to his friends about how to emit flames. Yamamoto was incredible as usual; he had gotten it on his first try. Ironically, Yamamoto's flame looked a lot like water, blue and full of ripples. Gokudera, frustrated, had taken several minutes. With some effort, he produced a large amount of bright red flames that set the fire alarm off in school (since then, Gokudera's cigarettes had been forcefully confiscated by Hibari. Yamamoto and Tsuna managed to talk him out of also confiscating the ring). Ryohei took a full two weeks before he listened to Tsuna on how to do it properly. When he managed to produce out a small flame, it was yellow and sparkled. Lambo had taken a long time to settle down and listen to the lecture, but he learned eventually, and let loose an electrical green flame that caused a blackout in the neighborhood. Tsuna then had found Chrome one day (not with Ken and Chikusa – thank goodness!) and gently informed her on the importance of it. Chrome showed him her ring and said simply, "Mukuro-sama already taught me." Her flames were a dazzling light shade of blue that seemed to flutter like a will-o-wisp. Indigo, Tsuna supposed. Hibari's… was a little odd. Of course, Hibari was terrifying. As usual. When asked (in a very quiet, timid voice) if he knew how to control the flames of the Cloud Ring, Hibari had stared at him dispassionately, before the stare turned to a glare. Tsuna took the hint and fled off the roof as fast as possible. Although later, in class, Tsuna caught sight of bright, violet fire on the school roof opposite to the classroom Tsuna was in. Oddly enough, Tsuna was the only one who saw it, as if Hibari had specifically waited for Tsuna to look up at the window. He had laughed a little about this afterwards. Gokudera scoffed and called Hibari childish. Yamamoto had chuckled and said, "Well, that's Hibari for you." Tsuna agreed with him.

So yes, Tsuna and all his Guardians knew how to produce Flames. Hibari went as far as to spread the flames to his tonfa when fighting, increasing his power and defense. Yamamoto had tried it as well, however he was unable to do it with the Shigure Kintoki. When Reborn suggested using a normal sword, Yamamoto had agreed, a tad reluctantly, and used an old samurai sword that Reborn had produced from no where. Reborn had trained Tsuna in to the ground (with Basil's help) in learning how to manipulate the flames to his will. Reborn wanted Tsuna to have a big finishing attack. When Tsuna asked why, Reborn said, "Because I want you to."

Tsuna couldn't exactly see the reasoning in that, but he knew better than to argue. He still hadn't gotten to perfecting that move yet though…

Tsuna held his ring in front of him and breathed softly, thinking of everyone. Kyoko, Haru, his mother, Gokudera, Yamamoto, Ryohei, Hibari, Mukuro, Chrome… everyone fluttered in to his mind and his wish to get stronger increased…

There was a little crackling noise, and a _whoosh!_ as his Sky Flame ignited. Tsuna smiled at the orange fire a little fondly. It was a beautiful, deep amber color, that seemed to whisper secrets to him that he couldn't hear…

Tsuna shook the little romantic fantasy out of his head and cleared his throat. "I should get going…" he muttered quietly and walked along the passageway.

A few minutes later, Tsuna coughed as he passed through a particularly dusty area. _So long… How long does this thing go for!?_ The passage winded around and around, and slowly was going downwards. _The library is on the fifth floor of the castle… Am I going underground?_

He kept walking, brushing the cobwebs out of his way. The air was getting a little thin, and Tsuna found it difficult to breathe. The Sky Flame shone gently and continued to light the way. Tsuna would have tripped over the sudden flight of stairs, had he not seen it coming first.

_A… A staircase?!_

_… What was the point of having a staircase here if the whole thing was already slanted downwards?_

Nevertheless, he took the stairs and slowly walked down, to prevent himself from tripping. He always felt the step cautiously with his foot before deeming it safe and stepping down. Eventually, he reached the bottom of the staircase, where a straight passage began.

_Ugh… more walking?_

He kept walking slowly. The air suddenly felt cleaner and lighter, so there was probably a draft nearby…

Something in front of him glinted. Tsuna stopped and looked closely. It appeared to be a door of some sort, one that looked very intricate and modern. Glancing around cautiously, he tugged the door handle. It didn't budge. However, the space underneath blew out a gentle wind, indicating that there was something on the other side of the door.

"I came all this way for a dead end?" Tsuna groaned in frustration. "Why does this always happen to me?!"

He examined the door a little more and discovered a handprint and a small sign above it on the door that was apparently in English. There was a short four-lined stanza that Tsuna had to squint at in the dim light. He saw that there were more words, but they had long rusted away. The sign was, oddly enough, in English, but since Tsuna was able to graduate middle school, he was able to make out the more complicated words.

"Only… with… re-resolution… noble blood… courage… against… self… allowed… pass…" Tsuna muttered to himself in Japanese. "So… I need to show my resolution? Uh…"

Tsuna looked down at his Sky Flame, still burning brightly. He knew that flames were the proof of resolution, so maybe if…

He pressed his hand in to the handprint and intensified the Flame. It glowed beautifully, and lit up the rest of the passage, but nothing happened.

"I guess I was wrong…" he pulled away his hand and frowned. _Noble blood… and courage?_

He sighed and glanced behind him at the dark tunnel. "I should probably go back… Aoi-san will kill me if I'm late for lessons… And maybe I can ask her."

He turned to leave, but of course, Tsuna being Tsuna, a mini version of Dino without the henchmen, tripped and hit the ground.

A wonder that he hadn't before.

"OW!!" he whimpered and stood up. "Oh, owww…"

He had landed hard on his hands, hard enough to still feel shivers running up his spine. Tsuna glanced down at them and saw that he was bleeding from the scraped skin. "Ow…"

_Wait…_ Tsuna suddenly came to a realization. He looked from his hand, to the door, and back to his hand. "Ah…"

He looked down at the ground, where there were sharp pebbles. He winced and glanced at the door again. _There's no other way…_

Biting his lip, he knelt down and scraped his hand against the rocks. He flinched as he felt the wound open wider, and more blood came forth.

_Noble blood…_

_And courage against yourself…_

When he judged that the cut was deep enough, he stepped towards the door again, gingerly pressed his bloody hand against the handprint, and ignited his flame once more.

Suddenly, Tsuna was able to read the words. Not actually on the door; in his mind.

**Only thee with the resolution,  
And thee with the noble blood,  
****And thee with courage against self,  
****Are allowed to pass here.**

"Ah…"

The door made a slight groaning, rusted noise that indicated that the door had obviously not been open for a long time. The entire tunnel shook. Tsuna gave a little shriek of fright and mentally begged for the door to hurry up so that he could get out of there.

Finally, the door fully opened. Tsuna rushed in quickly and gave a sigh of relief. The inside of the room was very old, but well maintained, so he didn't have to worry about the roof collapsing. Tsuna looked around the room and couldn't help but marvel at the surroundings.

It was a little odd, actually. The room was in Italian architecture, but also Japanese furnished. There were ancient books on an old, wooden table. After a brief examination, he discovered that they were old versions of 'Italian to Japanese Self-teaching.'

"So this room…" Tsuna looked around. "Must be the Vongola Primo's…"

Tsuna walked through the room, swiveling his head every few seconds. The place was very dusty, but otherwise neat and tidy. The mixture of polished wood and marble looked rather strange to Tsuna's eyes, but the effect was actually quite pleasant. Tsuna found another door on the far side of the room, and made his way to it. This door was handcarved from wood, and illustrated a familiar flower surrounded by butterflies.

_An orchid?_

There was another small inscription in the center of the door again, just above the orchid's petals, as if not to harm its beauty. This time, the inscription was in Japanese.

_Insert key_.

Insert key? Insert key where? Tsuna found a small niche in one of the butterflies that looked like a likely keyhole. "I don't have a key…" Tsuna muttered. The keyhole was round in shape and for some reason, the size looked oddly familiar…

"Oh!" Tsuna blinked and looked down at his ring. "I get it!"

He pushed the Sky Ring in to the keyhole and gave it a 180 twist. There was a _click_ and the door smoothly swung open. Just by looking inside, Tsuna could tell that it was Giotto's bedroom.

Beside the fact that there was a bed, it looked more comfortable and homey. The bed was four-poster and were covered with faded orange sheets. Photos hung on the walls; Tsuna saw Giotto in several of them. It reminded Tsuna that Giotto was not just a scary mafia boss, he was also a normal person. And if what Ran said was true, then he really was normal. Bookshelves covered one wall and were filled with ancient texts. An ornate mirror sat on clawed feet opposite of another door that was probably a bathroom. The more he looked, the more he could see the history of the room. He crossed over to Giotto's desk and touched the dusty wood with his fingertips. "Wow… this is where my grandfather used to spend his time…" he couldn't help but smile a little.

He turned to the bookshelves and explored their contents. The books looked as if they would fall apart if he even touched them. Now, Tsuna wasn't a huge book lover, but this was out of pure curiousity. From the corner of his eye, he saw a small red book that looked newer that the rest, but it was stuck between two large, ancient books. Gently jigglng and wiggling the book out, Tsuna managed to pry it from the shelf. He examined it. The book had a simple English word in old fashion writing that made it difficult to distinguish.

_… Di-Diary?_

Tsuna flipped the book open and read through the yellowing pages. Giotto had written mostly in Japanese, luckily, and began to read…

* * *

Remember that in the beginning of the Future Arc, Reborn had said that the TYL Yamamoto had been unable to use his Rain Flames with the Shigure Kintoki (at least, I think that's what he said).

And Ran means orchid, for you people to know...


	22. Decimo Mini Arc: Dear Diary Part II

If you did not see the update from yesterday, please read the previous chapter before you read this one.

I have learned many things in the past couple weeks. Among them being:

1) The Earl of Arundel is a real person. And very Hibari-like. Loved to be on his own, only bowed down to one man (except Hibari bows down to nobody. HA!), took interest in time travel, and Italy, and known to be feared by all his subordinates. For more information, email me and I will email you a link of a livejournal I have read that from.

2) I know, I know, the manga says "Alaude." However, that appears to be an instrument. Not a person.

3) God, fanfictions take a lot more research then I thought. Then again, maybe it's just me, because I'm a real stickler for accuracy.

4) Most important to me, I HAVE THE SAME BIRTHDAY AS FUUTA!!! January 11th. This makes me so happy~! I think Amano chose January 11th because of the whole 1(/)11 thing. Three ones, three rankings? But then she could have chosen November 1st. But then (again), Capricorn fits Fuuta and I better than Scorpio does.

**Title:** _Memories Never Fade__  
_**Chapter: **_Decimo Mini Arc: Dear Diary Part II  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Action/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!! And there will be more!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_I'm thinking seven now..._  
**The Most Main Characters:**_Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _Tsuna reads Giotto's diary, and many stories are unfolded..._

* * *

**_October 14 _**(_my birthday! _Tsuna thought)**_, first day here at the Vongola Castle. I can't believe that it's finally finished after all this time. I never thought that I'd start such a large organization. My parents did always say I was destined for great things; I just didn't know how great._**

**_It's times like this where I think of _**_her** again. I know I only met her once as a child, but she made a big impact on me. I think I might have fallen in love with her. Puppy dog love, if you will.**_

**_It was about ten years ago. I met her when I was seven. She looked… well, like a tramp. Her whole body was filthy with grime. But I saw straight through that, and knew that she was something special. Intuition, I guess?_**

**_She looked really thin, so I had bought her some food. She was wary of me at first, but then she seemed to accept me. The food was devoured in seconds. She, being Japanese, thanked me. I couldn't completely understand her at first, because back then my Japanese was horrible. I'm writing in the language now for practice, though this is still all hiragana and some katakana. I have trouble with remembering kanji. _**

**_Anyway, we talked a little. Oddly enough, she knew Italian. Wonder where she picked it up from, because she said she never traveled out of Japan; just back. That part didn't make sense to me. But I was young, therefore, I didn't care. _**

**_She was quite intriguing. I was always fascinated by Japanese girls because they looked so different from Italian ones. Call me a pervert, but I guess I prefer the slender and petite, rather than the tall and busty. *ahem*_**

**_She was sweet to me. And interested in my dream of building a Family. I offered to let her be part of it, and she accepted, but I never saw her again after that day. I wonder where she is now? I think I'll draw a picture after this…_**

* * *

Tsuna stared at the entry for a bit before turning the page. This didn't sound like something a sophisticated mafia boss would say. It sounded almost… childish. More like a teenager going through adolescence. Tsuna wondered how Giotto really was, not that stiff man that he always saw in portraits.

He turned the page to see the drawing. The picture was in pencil, so it had faded some. Squinting, Tsuna could make out the shape of a small girl, with long brown hair and a bright smile. She looked oddly familiar, but Tsuna couldn't place her.

He turned to the next page and continued to read.

* * *

**_November 1st, clear with a crisp autumn feel. I discovered a strange stone underneath the old house back in the forest. It used to belong to a relative of mine who let me have the land after he died. I don't even know who he was. The stone looks like it was originally in separate pieces that were forcibly melted together._**

**_The stone has a power, I can feel it. When I touched it today, I had a vision of orange fire covering my body, but instead of burning me, it granted me strength beyond my wildest dreams. I shared this with my friend, the Earl of Arundel. Well, I can't call him my friend exactly, because he's a loner who prefers who work on his own. But our families have known each other for a long time, so you can say that we're childhood friends that don't see each other much. But, he's taken a liking to Italy and also has a bit of a childish side that most people don't notice at first though. Most people look at his outside, not his inside. They'd know that he has some soft spots somewhere in there… (oh god, if he ever finds this, he is going to KILL me. Agggh, agggh, agggh). He, on his travels, had found another stone, similar to the one I had. Even the forcibly melted together parts._**

**_Arundel took some interest in the stone I found, and took a sample (WITHOUT TELLING ME FIRST) back with him to England for a check. He actually reported back to me, saying something about how the stone is able to channel the life force and spirit of a person into power. Then he went in to some weird thing about that every time he touches the stone, purple sparks appear… Not doubting his sanity or anything, but sometimes I think all the stress and loneliness goes to his head. When I pointed that out to him, Arundel snapped back at me that I had visions of being covered in orange flames. I retorted that at least orange was a normal color of fire. He stopped replying to my letters after that. After an apology, he came directly back to Italy and said that a third set of stones were found. A SET. There were seven in all, and these were in different colors for some odd reason. They were still pretty similar to the ones the Earl and I had, but these stones were still… different. The shape was odd too, like a baby's toy._**

**_Speaking of babies, my supposed fiancee is supposed to arrive soon. I'm only seventeen and don't want to get married, but I have no choice. Besides, a certain childhood friend of mine is going to make sure that I get a proper wife to carry on the bloodline of the Vongola. (A certain childhood friend is going to get the boot if he tells another woman embarassing stories about my childhood… Especially if he tells her my old nickname, "Sky Boy." I STILL don't know why people called me that…)_**

* * *

Tsuna was laughing a little at this entry. Not only did the Earl of Arundel remind him slightly of Hibari, but the unnamed childhood friend sounded a lot like Gokudera in his own way. It seemed that the Earl was on better terms with Giotto that Tsuna was with Hibari.

* * *

**_November 8th. I've met my fiance. She's a sweet woman, but not really my type. She admits that I am also not her type (she was gentle about it though, calling me 'dashing' and 'quick-witted'. Sounded kind of old fashioned, coming from her mouth. Makes me wonder what her type actually is)._**

**_I'm wondering about my first love and where she is right now again. I feel like that she's out there somewhere, waiting for me. I shared this with my fiancee. She admits that she had a boyfriend back in her hometown, but believes that it was her duty to marry me. So we made a pact._**

**_One child. That's it. We'll have one child, then we'll divorce and set back to seeking the people that we know we can love and have true feelings for. I'm glad that my to-be-wife is so understanding._**

* * *

Tsuna frowned. Would he have to marry against his will? If he had to pick, he'd marry someone like Aoi-san… Kyoko-chan! He meant Kyoko-chan! Why did Aoi-san pop in to his head? _No! Never mind that! Keep reading!_

* * *

**_November 15th. I took a walk with my fiancee this morning, and then went to a meeting with the Earl and my childhood friend. Arundel announced that he had discovered a link in between the stones. They were part of the very first pieces of the world, the things that had created earth. My childhood friend (who did not get along very well with Arundel), scoffed at this. He said that the world had been created by aliens._**

**_… Yeah, he's always been kind of weird like that. He loves science-fiction, and I'm not even sure if half of the things he believes in exist… except Nessie. That was a, er, failed experiment from my scientists that we had to dump somewhere, so we picked Scotland. Ahahah…_**

**_More importantly, I asked for proof from Arundel. He showered me with six dozen books about the stones. God knows where he found them. But they all spoke of the same thing; a stone had created the world, and then split in to twenty-one pieces, each with slightly different properties. I'm guessing that when that meteor that wiped out the dinosaurs hit the earth, fourteen of the pieces melted in to two rocks. Arundel told me that I would need to think that theory through a little more. Then my childhood friend went in to a rant of being left out in a conversation that he really did not understand. Arundel told him that it was because he didn't understand was why he was being excluded. And, well, it seems I'll need a new west wing… They fight too much! Honestly…_**

* * *

Tsuna realized what this was about. The Vongola Rings and the Arcobaleno Pacifiers. Reborn had once told him that there was a thing called the 7^3 policy, and that the rings and pacifiers were a part of it. Tsuna wondered what became of the other stone…

* * *

**_December 2nd. I can't believe this. The stone that Arundel left with me was STOLEN. STOLEN, goddammit! And now he's going to kill me. I mean that. I AM GOING TO DIE._**

**_*breathes* Now that that's out of the way, I talked to him about it. Arundel obviously was not pleased ("The one time I trust you with something, you just have to blow it, don't you?"). I apologized to him a great deal, but… I still got a huge bruise on my back the size of a grapefruit now. And it hurts like HELL. So no, I'm not dead. Yet._**

**_I have my own reasons to believe why and who stole the stone. The Gesso is my first choice, because they've been at war with us for some time now. This is why the Elders of the Council have decided that it would be best to appoint Guardians for me. I didn't want to be babysat, so I protested. The argument kept going until we compromised. I would be one of the Guardians myself, and appoint six others to help me rule the Vongola, and I have a few people in mind already…_**

**_The Guardians are supposed to be based off of weather elements, most probably because of my old nickname. And so, I am the Sky. I have a few friends that would do this job nicely, but I'll need to confirm with them first…_**

* * *

Tsuna was getting rather excited. This diary was so interesting, hearing about how things came in to being. Tsuna realized that he would probably see how the rings came in to existence.

* * *

**_December 4th. I confirmed with two of them, but I'm having trouble picking a the other four. So far, I have my childhood friend, and a musician friend of mine from Japan. Don't underestimate him; he may be a music lover, but his skills with a blade are formidable._**

**_I know of a strong man with incredible boxing abilities that could probably join the Family. He seems to be a good man. Another mafia boss from an alliance family is begging me to let his coward of a son to become a Guardian, so that he can finally shoulder some responsibility. Another man is a spy for hire, who is elusive and tricky to negotiate with, but he seems to have taken an interest in the Vongola… and for some reason, he keeps talking about possessions._**

**_Speaking of negotiations, I'm having a lot of problems with convincing the Earl of Arundel to become one of my Guardians. He says that he already stands at the top, and is not willing to stand below a man who is weaker than he. I suppose I should get stronger, and then ask him again. Despite the willy-nilly way he acts, Arundel is a sensible person. He knows that I know that he knows that I need him. As for weather elements, I've thought up a couple titles, but I guess that's depend on the personalities of my Guardians… And I've finally discovered why they called me "Sky Boy" when I was little, so it should be something similar to this:_**

**Sky: Embracing everything and is embraced by everything, the leader, and always accepts everything.**

**Storm: Always quick to act and center of attack.**

**Rain: Refreshing for the spirit and able to calm down others when need be.**

**Sun: Shines brightly when we need it. Helps in times of danger.**

**Thunder: Sharp, hard, and unyielding to enemies.**

**Cloud: Drifting and aloof, sometimes covering the sky and sometimes leaving it bare.**

**Mist: Willy and difficult, always seems to be just beyond our grasp (hmm, maybe Mist and Cloud should combine as one?).**

**Wind: Turbulent and gets along well with Storm and Clouds. Sometimes gentle, sometimes harsh and fierce.**

**Stars and Moon: I don't know why I wanted to combine these, but something told me I should. Shines best in dark times, and makes the best out of the situation.**

**Night: Opposite of the sky, embracing nothing and accepting nothing. Able to erase anything. That's all I've got.**

**Snow: Pure and gentle, but harsh and cold when aggravated.**

**_I'll probably go with the first six, since they remind me most of the people I'm trying to recruit, but this makes me wonder… If there were more guardians, would I be able to provide a ring for them all?_**

_**Oh! About the rings. I haven't mentioned them yet, have I? My researchers have managed to split the stone in to smaller fragments, small enough to be made into rings. If they are really able to give us extra power, then we'd probably need them to help us in times of crisis. I just hope that nothing terrible comes from my decision.**_

* * *

Tsuna read this last entry with amusement. So this was how the names for the Guardians were really created? Sort of cute, in a creepy way. Giotto was rather creative. Tsuna wondered if the last four flames existed at all. He decided to research that.

… Wait, why was he taking interest? ARRRGH!! CURSE YOU RED BARON!! I mean… GIOTTO!! *coughs*

* * *

_**Janurary 11th. **(Hmmm, Fuuta's birthday,_ Tsuna thought)**_ Quite a timeskip here. I've decided on the titles for my Guardians; Storm, Rain, Sun, Thunder, Cloud, and Mist. The first six, just as I had decided anyways. Storm is my childhood friend, who always did seem to have a stormy and aggressive nature. Rain is my musician friend, who always soothed me with the music he played (though his samurai skills give me shivers). Sun is for the boxer, who, though retired to become a priest, helped us when we were in danger, like a sun rising over the horizon to blow away the darkness. Thunder went to the son of the alliance family. It doesn't actually fit him, but maybe the title will make him live up to his potential? Mist went to the spy for hire. The name suits HIM very well; he's sneaky, deceptive, and hides things from you, like the mist. Cloud, the aloof drifter, of course went to Arundel, who I finally managed to convince (read, force) into helping me. He said that as long as it didn't hinder his own desires, he would fufill his duties, but I'm worried, and for a good reason…_**

**_My marriage is going to be soon. I hate to admit it, but, erm... my fiancee is already pregnant with a child. Hahahah... Oof, I'm so worried! What if he doesn't turn out right?! What if he shows no interest in the mafia?! I'm hoping I'll make a good father._**

* * *

Tsuna almost started laughing. Giotto was so worried! It was so weird to hear him freak out. Then Tsuna thought that if he ever had children, he'd probably freak too. IF. If was a very big word, though it was actually very short.

* * *

**_February 14th, the most romantic day of the year. My wife's stomach is growing a little bigger every day. I'm becoming excited to be a parent. I don't care if it's a cripple or grows up to be a bum; it's still my son, no matter what._**

**_Earl came by today, looking pretty pissed off about something. Apparently, his subjects decided that he needed to marry. Needless to say, the Earl who let no one control him is suppose to be married by the end of the year, or they would take away his title. I'd like to see them try, but I do admit, it would be nice if Arundel got married. It's satisfying to see wild men become settled. Even my childhood friend is courting a young woman from the flower shop in town. She's quite a beauty. _**

**_I received word from my musician friend too. Apparently he's fallen for the daughter of a fisherman. He sent me a painting; at first, I thought she was a geisha. I don't know whether that's good or bad…_**

**_My Sun Guardian is a priest, and he doesn't want to get married, but I hope that he'll find a woman someday that can make his life turn around and give him the inspiration to reenter the boxing ring._**

**_My Lightning Guardian has always been popular with woman, but I think that he's playing around too much. I guess I'll make him go on a mission… Not that I'm being mean, but it's a good idea for him to get away from the people spoiling him._**

**_Even my Mist Guardian is apparently interested in someone; a young lady from England who had hidden and nursed him when he almost was caught (by Arundel, no less). She must have a heart of gold to do such a thing. I'll admit that though his intentions are not pure, my Mist Guardian has a good heart. He's not a truly bad person, just a little… impulsive._**

**_My wife received a gift from her boyfriend, saying that he understood our situation. I'm glad. She seemed really happy too. The gift was nice. A scrapbook of all their times together. She let me look through it, but snatched it away when I commented on the picture of her in the bathroom. I think she got mad at her boyfriend for putting that photo there. She wasn't nude though, so why was she mad?_**

**_I'm wondering where my first love is. Does she have someone else that she loves? For some reason, my intuition is telling me 'no'. I hope that's right._**

* * *

Tsuna smiled at this entry. Even though they all had their own duties and missions, they all had time for a special person. Tsuna hoped that he could be like that too… Wait, he wasn't going to be in the mafia. What was he talking about?

* * *

**_March 3rd, OH MY FUCKING GOD. I can't believe what just happened between Arundel and my Mist Guardian. It's unbelievable. I'm getting a little ahead of myself here, so I'll go back a bit… (and no, it's nothing like THAT)_**

**_Basically put, Arundel fell in love. I'm serious. And with who? WITH MY MIST GUARDIAN'S GIRL OF ALL PEOPLE. I-I admit I should have seen this, as this girl (I believe her name is Nancy) lives in England and oddly close to where Arundel lives (or that's what he says. According to his subjects, he doesn't actually live in the castle. I have not a clue where this guy lives, and I've known him almost all my life)._**

**_Now, Nancy is a sweet girl, and she doesn't seem to know which one to choose. She was rather charmed by my Mist Guardian's sweet manner towards her, but she seems to have been taken at first sight with Arundel… I'll admit that both of them are very handsome men. I don't blame Nancy at all; she's torn. To tell the truth, I'm rooting for Arundel, because I'm sure this will be the only woman he will ever fall in love with. There are plenty of others for my Mist Guardian._**

**_I'm not totally sure how it happened yet. I'll get an analysis from them later…_**

* * *

Tsuna stared at the book. Now this was creepy; it sounded just like his own life right now.

Well, no, Hibari wasn't in love with Chrome, but Mukuro might be. And Chrome might have been in love with Mukuro. And although Chrome was not in the center, both Hibari and Mukuro had a definite rivalry. Tsuna remembered when they had last met, through Chrome's body, a year ago. Hibari had almost destroyed Namimori, and Mukuro was enjoying every part of the fight. Tsuna sighed and buried his face in his hands. Already, back then, he had been made temporary mafia boss after the Ninth went on vacation with Xanxus for bonding time… Tsuna found it a wonder that the Ninth was still alive. Xanxus hadn't actually tried to kill him. Well, because Tsuna had been made boss, he had to pay for the damages. Thank goodness that he had been given access to the overall bank account of the Vongola, or he would have been stuck in debt for the rest of his life.

* * *

**_March 8th, finally! I found out what happened between Arundel and my Mist Guardian, and how Arundel fell in love. Nancy seems to like Arundel better, of late, but that may be because my Mist Guardian had been missing for a few months now… probably doing some job unrelated to the Vongola._**

**_It was sort of like this, I think. Arundel was patrolling his town sometime in February (after Valentine's Day) when he first met Nancy. She didn't catch his eye at first; he walked right by her, but Nancy noticed him for sure. Then again, you don't see pretty boys like Arundel walking by every day._**

**_The next day, Arundel went on patrol again. This time, he met Nancy directly. And when I say directly, I mean that Nancy suddenly tripped when she saw him and fell against him. Corny, I know, but this is really what happened. Arundel, though cruel, is a gentleman. He helped her up and then walked away without saying a word. Nancy apparently took an interest in him then. However, that brief heart-pounding moment was squashed when my Mist Guardian came to call at night, and, er… well, if you're an adult, then you have an idea of what I'm saying._**

**_The next day after that, Nancy and Arundel met again. And by the same way. She tripped (not on purpose, I'm guessing that my Mist Guardian, er, made her too sore to move properly…) again and smacked headfirst in to him. And then their conversation went something like this:_**

**_Arundel: Do you crash in men on a daily basis as a way of flirting? I'm not interested._**

**_Nancy: That's not it (flustered)! I'm sorry. Did I hurt you?_**

**_Arundel: No._**

**_Nancy: I-I see…_**

**_Arundel: … Wait a minute, do you know XXX? (under the request of my Mist Guardian, I promised not to reveal his name)_**

**_Nancy: Eh? Ah, yes! Er, do you?_**

**_Arundel: … Obviously. How could I ask about a person I don't know?_**

**_Nancy: (getting more flustered) I-I'm sorry! Please excuse my ignorance…_**

**_Arundel: Hn. I wonder why he's interested in a woman such as you._**

**_Nancy: (start getting slightly angry) W-Well, it's not like you're interested, so why do you care? Go away! (leaves)_**

**_Arundel: …_**

**_I know this will sound weird, but I think Arundel started to like her right after that. He's always been a masochist, and he prefers tough women who can take care of themselves. That way, they aren't useless in a fight and can actually do something when they're captured. Arundel started to visit her a lot, became somewhat friends with her, and one day…_**

**_Arundel: Are you still seeing XXX?_**

**_Nancy: I haven't seen him for a while now. He doesn't seem to come by as often. Why?_**

**_Arundel: … I'm going to Italy for a while to visit a person._**

**_Nancy: Oh (crestfallen)… When are you leaving?_**

**_Arundel: In a month or so. But I won't be able to come visit you anymore for a while, because I have to tie up some loose ends in my work._**

**_Nancy: I… I see…_**

**_Arundel: I was wondering…_**

**_Nancy: Yes?_**

**_Arundel: Do you want to come with me?_**

**_And BAM. It's like that. And then my Mist Guardian came back a week later to find Nancy going up to the castle (apparently she can't stand to be away from Arundel for very long anymore). He was furious when he heard Arundel had charmed the woman he was in love with, and now they're in a full out battle. I'm waiting for the results. So Arundel, Nancy, and my Mist Guardian are coming in a week to visit, and I'll be able to assess the situation myself. Oh dear god, I hope I won't have to redo my whole castle if those two get in another fight._**

* * *

Tsuna laid back on the bed as he read this. "Wow," he muttered. "Does this mean that I'm going to have to deal with love affairs of my Guardians after a while too? Wait… I'M NOT BEING A BOSS!! AGGGH!!!" Tsuna clutched his head and screamed in frustration.

_Growl…_

Tsuna blinked. Was that his stomach? Oh no! How long had he been down here? More than two hours, at least. Tsuna gulped. Aoi was going to kill him!

He leapt up and ran back out to the living room, taking the diary with him. What was he going to do!? How could he get back out? The door had shut behind him in the library, and he was sure that even if he walked back all that way, the door wouldn't reopen. Tsuna didn't realize it before, but he was trapped.

"Hiiii, what do I do?!"

After running around in pointless circles for a while, Tsuna calmed down enough to start tapping along the walls. Giotto was a bright enough person to at least make a secret exit, right? All mafia bosses had some sort of secret exit in a secret hideout! It was like a code!

Tsuna opened a door and entered what seemed to be a kitchen. The place was brightly furnished and had a cheerful white and apple green wallpaper that lit up the whole room, even without light.

"Um…" Tsuna opened another door that turned out to be the pantry. "Nooo, what do I do…?"

He sighed and leaned back against the space between the refrigerator and the pantry door. "There's not an exit anywhere…"

A large, brown book caught his eye, and he lifted it off of its perch on the refrigerator. He flipped it open and looked at the pictures. "A cookbook? And handmade too…"

In both Japanese and Italian, the book described several methods of how to cook dishes from many countries on the globe. The writing was slightly faded, but it was handwritten. "Didn't figure Grandfather would be the chef type…" Tsuna muttered. "But why was it lying on top of the fridge? Mom always puts her books away on the shelf under the dish cabinet…"

Tsuna looked up, and lo and behold! There indeed was a shelf under the dish cabinet that had a stand which looked perfect for a cookbook. "Grandfather was a rather messy person then…" he set it back on the stand.

And of course, the floor underneath him suddenly gave way and he was sliding down a tunnel shoot, hurtling downwards, and screaming all the way.

"HIIIIIIIIII!!!!"

Tsuna feet slammed against something metal, and the shock rattled his brain, making him unable to be coherent for a few moments. When he came back to his senses, he realized that he had slammed on to a door. "The hell…?"

Tsuna opened the door and found himself tumbling back out in to the Vongola Castle's kitchen.

"EH?! Wasn't I underground?!" the Vongola kitchen was on the second floor of the castle!

In the end, in the years to come, no matter how many time Tsuna traveled that passage, he could never figure out how he was underground one moment, then above ground the next. Giotto had some interesting inventions…

* * *

Ahaha, I enjoyed writing this. I hoped you enjoyed reading it~!

My birthday (and Fuuta's) is in seven days. Yay~! However, my chemistry midterm is now coming up. BOO!


	23. Decimo Mini Arc: Dear Diary Part III

(*pant pant pant*)!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm back...!!!! Kind of...!!!

I'm so sorry for being away! It's just that ever since the newest developments in the manga, I've been slamming myself in the head because now my story does not make sense anymore. And I'm a very meticulous person on detail, so I'm freaking out when I know that I'm not supposed to be freaking out because there are parallel worlds in here which makes everything that I said possible but then the personalities for the people are becoming different and DAMMIT AMANO-SENSEI, JUST WHEN I GOT IT WORKED OUT YOU HAVE TO PUT IN ANOTHER BUNCH OF CHARACTERS DON'T YOU!!!!! And the arc! The new First Generation arc!! It's driving me mad because I have to rewrite all the other chapters because I now know the appropriate names! DAMMIT DAMMIT DAMMIT!!!!!

(*pant pant pant, whew*)

Okay, I'm calm (oh who am I kidding, I'm a wreck).

Of course, this isn't the only reason that I've been gone for... what, for months? (last updated January 4th, 2010). There are two reasons for why I stayed away for so long, but I'll put them on the bottom, because you all may be impatient. Even though this chapter is a lot shorter than I like ...T.T

**Title:** _Memories Never Fade__  
_**Chapter: **_Decimo Mini Arc: Dear Diary Part III  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Action/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!! And there will be more!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_I'm thinking seven now..._  
**The Most Main Characters:**_Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _Tsuna reads Giotto's diary, and many stories are unfolded... and tragedies which may never be solved..._

* * *

_**Decimo Mini Arc: Dear Diary Part III**_

Ran scowled. Tsuna had been totally spacey today. Come to think of it, ever since he had disappeared for half a day yesterday, he had been very quiet and ponderous. He looked as if he were giving something some hard thought.

Unfortunately, it showed on his studies. For the millionth time that day, Ran slapped him to keep him in reality.

"Hey! Where are you staring at, you idiot?!" Ran put her face up close and glared. To her surprise, Tsuna blushed and quickly moved away.

"I-I'm sorry!" he apologized. "I'm just thinking of something…"

"Hmm…" Ran's anger cooled to her curiosity. She propped her cheek on her fist, looking sideways at Tsuna. "Thinking about what?"

"Just things…" Tsuna glanced at her. "What was Giotto like as a person?"

"What?" Ran blinked.

"Ah!" Tsuna flailed his arms. "Sorry! I know that it's strange, but…" he gulped. "I just got curious is all."

"Hm, what sort of person, huh…" Ran chuckled. "He was funny as a kid."

"Really?"

"Yeah. He was… open to everyone. He didn't care about a person's past, he cared about the person for himself or herself. I believe that his nickname reflected that. What was it again…"

"Was it Sky Boy?" questioned Tsuna. Ran paused and blinked at him.

"Yes it was… but how do you know that?"

Tsuna opened his mouth to tell her about the diary that he found, before he paused. "Um… Hyper Intuition…?" he said weakly. Tsuna wasn't exactly sure why, but for some reason, he hadn't wanted to tell her about the diary. He supposed it was because it felt like an heirloom to him. One that he didn't want to share with anyone.

"Hmmm," she gave him a piercing look. "Well, don't let that put you off your studies!" Ran was stern with Tsuna. Hibari, she loved. Tsuna? He was just another student, so no special treatment.

"Y-Yes ma'am…"

Tsuna turned his head back to the math worksheet set in front of him. "This is going to take forever…" he muttered.

Ran heard him and gave him a light slap on the head again. "Please stay focused. After this you can take a little break, alright?"

"Thanks!" he smiled at her and picked up his pencil. The quiet scratching of lead against paper filled the room. Ran watched Tsuna out of the corner of her eye.

_He's really a bit of a useless guy, but…_ she smiled slightly. _It's sort of hard not to grow fond of him after a while._

Tsuna sighed with relief, collasping on to his huge bed after a long day. _God, I had to sign sixteen stacks of paperwork today. WHY do the Vongola always seem to cause so much damage!?_

He groaned and turned his head to the side. _And Aoi-san made me do extra exercises in Italian too… Well, it's true that I need it, but at the same time…_

He sighed again and reached for his dresser drawer, where he had hidden the diary. The wood was smooth against his fingers as he groped aimlessly without seeing what he was reaching for. "Ah, found it…"

He opened to the page that he had left off of and once more began to read.

_**March 13**__**th**__**. Most of the time I don't believe in bad luck. But right now, I do. Aluade and my Mist Guardian are currently battling outside in the garden (my gardener, Matteo, is going to throw a fit. Flowers are his passion). Nancy has given up on trying to calm them down, and is cooking with the maids in the kitchens. Something tells me that I'm going to have to sign a lot of paperwork when this is over.**_

_**I haven't mentioned this before, but my wife's name is Ginerva. Ginerva's stomach is growing, little by little. I'm actually a little sorry to divorce from her; maybe I've fallen in love with her, just not deeply enough. But, well… my first love is still finely etched in to my memory. Sorry, I know that's repetetive…**_

_**But anyways, Nancy is still undecided between Aluade and my Mist Guardian (hmm, maybe I should just call him Mist from now on. That's what his name means in Italian anyway…). Well, my hope for Aluade still stands, but Mist is fine too… If they become one of those threesome couples however, I will definitely put my foot down.**_

_… A – A threesome couple?_Tsuna thought, stricken. He momentarily imagined Mukuro and Hibari **both** with Chrome… and turned a very bright shade of red. "Mo-Moving on now…"

_**March 19**__**th**__**. Today was cloudy, with the sun sleeping behind white puffs of cotton. I feel very poetic today. Oddly enough.**_

_**Ginerva's quite upset that she and the child will have to be seperated. I suggested that she and her lover come to live with us, but she said no. It wouldn't be good for a mafia boss's ex-wife to blatantly show that she already has a new man. She'd get killed. I'll have to agree with her.**_

_**But the baby causes a lot of trouble for poor Ginerva. We sleep in separate rooms, but I still hear her getting up and rushing to her bathroom. Sometimes I have to rush over to help. They say that the final months of pregnancy make a woman truly glow. Unfortunetly, that's not going to be for a while.**_

_Wow, that sucks_, Tsuna thought, flicking through the pages again. _Come to think of it, women do always seem to puke during pregnancy. Why do they want kids then?_

The next page's handwriting was incredibly shaky, and there were a few splotches here and there that looked like tearstains. _Why would Giotto cry?_

_**April 4**__**th**__**. Ginerva was badly hurt a few days ago. That's why I haven't been writing for a while. She was taking a walk in the garden by herself when a wall collasped and half buried her underneath. She was stuck there for several, agonizing hours before someone found her there. We rushed her to the infirmary. She was alright; so it seemed, but when I went there about two weeks ago, she asked me in the smallest, most pitiful voice, "Who are you?"**_

_**Those words slapped me hard across the face. Apparently she lost most of her memories, only remembering her name and that she was pregnant. I told her that I was the father of her child. She smiled at me brightly, and said, "Oh really? In that case, dear…"**_

_**She had never called me 'dear' before. It was always just 'Giotto'. I didn't see anything I could do for her. So I sent for her boyfriend.**_

_**When he came, she didn't recognize him. When he told her that he was her real beloved, she said in a puzzled tone, "What are you saying? My husband is right next to you."**_

_**He was angry. I didn't blame him. However, he did blame me. More accurately, he grabbed me and screamed, "CAN'T YOU DO ANYTHING?! YOU ARE A MAFIA BOSS WITH OVER 5,000 AT YOUR COMMAND!!"**_

_**I really tried to tell him that I was sorry, I really did. But he refused to accept my apology and said that I was good for nothing. This was all my fault. A person precious to me and many others has lost any recollection of them, and I can't do anything.**_

_**After which, Ginerva's lover accused me of making the wall collapse on purpose. I denied this, of course. That was ridiculous! How could I possibly be sure that Ginerva would lose her memory? I couldn't have planned for any of this! And I don't know what to do… Ginerva, I hope that your memory will come back soon, because you aren't Ginerva without it.**_

A wave of sorrow passed over Tsuna. Poor Giotto. Poor Ginerva. Poor Ginerva's boyfriend. What the hell was going to happen to his unfortunate ancestor?

_**April 23th. Ginerva's been dithering about the baby and has been dragging me to go shopping for the baby. I mean, we don't even know if it's a boy or girl yet. When I pointed this out to her, she said that we could get mutual colors that were accepted by both boys and girls. Colors like green (her favorite color) and yellow (the color of my hair). I thought about it. Get orange, I said to her. When she asked why, I had shrugged.**_

_**Orange didn't suit me, and there's no reason why it should suit my child, but orange is a good color, the color of when the day and night can mix together and become one in perfect harmony.**_

_**Of course, when I said this to Ginerva, she just looked at me like I was nuts, and then decided to get paint the walls green and make the furniture red, yellow, and white. I gave up after that.**_

_Orange, huh…_Tsuna glanced down at his Sky Ring. For a brief moment, he made the jewel glow orange before returning to read more entries.

_**May 8**__**th**__**. Everything has been slow going. Ginerva's been chatting happily to the maids about the baby. They are smiling and eagerly offering advice, but in private, they look at each other and shake their heads. "Poor Giotto-sama," they say. "with Lady Ginerva forgetting everything."**_

_**I don't want their pity.**_

Tsuna frowned. The last few words had been dug in to the paper so fiercely that they left indents in the next couple pages. Clearly, Giotto had been angry. The entry was very short compared to the others. Tsuna turned the page, and to his surprise, realized that it was the last. There were no more.

_Shouldn't there be more somewhere?_Tsuna frowned and decided to go through the passage in the library.

* * *

A few minutes later, deep within the bowels of the Vongola Castle, Tsuna was riffling through the library shelves within Giotto's secret study. There were several more notebooks, however, these were in Italian. Tsuna frowned. Surely the sequel to the journal within his possession should also be in Japanese? He gave up with a sigh, wondering mournfully if he could ever find it.

"Guess I should try some other time," Tsuna sighed, and flopped down on Giotto's bed. He glanced at the nightstand, handsomely carved from rowan wood, and absently played with the drawer handle.

_Where else could that journal be? Should I search the main library again? Or would the notebook be somewhere else? Somewhere that only Giotto would go…_

The memory of an entry drifted up.

"_**November 1**__**st**__**, clear with a crisp autumn feel. I discovered a strange stone underneath the old house back in the forest. It used to belong to a relative of mine who let me have the land after he died."**_

An old house in the forest? Behind the Castle?

"THAT'S IT!!" Tsuna yelled triumphantly. Quickly sitting up, he accidently gave the nightstand's drawer handle a hard yank. Instead of coming out and falling on to the floor (or worse, catapulting in to Tsuna's face), there was a loud creak of rusty gears, and Tsuna screamed as he was suddenly flung forwards in to the wall.

_HIIIII!! I'm going to hit it!_

Eyes still firmly shut, Tsuna waited for the painful impact which never came. Instead, he landed on something soft and silky. Cracking his eyelids open, he found himself lying… on his bed?!

"WHAT THE HELL!?" he screeched, scrambling upwards. How on earth did he end up from Giotto's bedroom to his own bedroom?!

_G-Giotto is a very scary man… How did he invent some of this stuff?_

The memory of his grandfather sent him hurrying out the door, blazing past Aoi, who got a very shocked look on her face before taking off after him.

"Hold on, you!" Aoi grabbed him firmly by the ear and gamely held on. Tsuna let out a wail of pain before quieting and keeping still. "And just where do you think that you're off to?"

Tsuna gulped and gave a weak gesture out the window. "J-Just going outside… for some fresh air…"

Aoi gave him a strange look. "Weren't you listening to the weather forecast? There's a storm brewing up. You can't go out today."

Tsuna peered out the window, and noted sadly that Amaya was correct; it was already drizzling, and the sky was covered by omnious looking clouds.

"Whatever you want to do, it'll have to wait till tomorrow," Aoi said firmly, oddly reminding Tsuna of his mother, Sawada Nana. "For now, you stay indoors. It's time for combat training anyway."

Tsuna groaned. "Are you serious?"

"I'm serious," Aoi thankfully let go of his ear, but then grabbed on to his collar and dragged him down the hall. "No shirking off your lessons! If that Arcobaleno was here, what would he say?"

Tsuna gulped at the idea. Reborn would probably tie him to a stake and feed him to a pack of wolves. And _leave_ him there.

"Exactly," Aoi said. She seemed to have the same uncanny knack of reading Tsuna's mind as Reborn did. "Now be thankful that I'm being merciful towards you."

Tsuna remembered the last training that he had gone through with Aoi.

"Wait, that was MERCIFUL!?"

* * *

And there you have it. I know, I know, it's short, but give me a break. I was having problems. And... other stuff...

Okay, so there are two music groups (well, one's not a group) that I have fallen for so hard that it isn't funny. It took me away from manga and writing fanfics for about two months before I got back on track. One is the #1 Korean boyband, Super Junior. The other is the uprising new star of the Chinese/Taiwanese entertainment, Yen-J. For those of you interested...

For Yen-J, he has three music videos (no dancing, sadly), but the songs are beautiful.

Love Is Curry: http: // www . youtube . com / watch? v=WMMiyhYRCak  
Trapped in Taipei: http : // www . youtube . com / watch? v=c9S-BcbGckU& feature=channel  
Thank You For Your Wonderful: http : // www . youtube . com / watch? v=FPNODXJMDVg

For Super Junior, I'm really not going to bother. They're so popular that I'm sure most of you already know them. There are a couple Yaoi fanfics of them circulating around on here...

Just search Super Junior on Youtube and click on all the music videos by sment. All the songs and dancing are awesome. They're supposed to be a dance group, but their voices are amazing. And when you actually get to know them, it gets even better. For beginners, looks out for these songs:

Sorry Sorry  
It's You  
Don'T Don  
U  
Marry U  
Super Girl

If you want to really get to know these guys, at least know that there are four subgroups. Super Junior-M, Super Junior-T, Super Junior-H, and Super Junior-K.R.Y. For those of you who don't know, subgroups are smaller groups from the big group. And Super Junior-M have two extra people not from the original Super Junior.

Well, that's all. Review!


	24. Decimo Mini Arc: Dear Diary Part IV

First time I ever released a chapter this early after another. Rather short though...

After this mini arc, we'll be switching back to Hibari for a good helping of OCOC1896. The OC being a boy. The other OC being a 12-year-old girl. Don't worry, I'll explain when we get there.

**Title:** _Memories Never Fade__  
_**Chapter: **_Decimo Mini Arc: Dear Diary Part III  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Action/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!! And there will be more!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_I'm thinking seven now..._  
**The Most Main Characters:**_Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _Decimo Mini Arc: Dear Diary IV Tsuna tries to find the other half of the diary, but the location is a little out of the way... and when a storm strikes, will the romance finally bloom?_

* * *

Even the softness of the bed couldn't take away the throbbing pain Tsuna felt all over his body. After going through many violent rounds of training with Aoi, it wasn't till midnight that Aoi allowed him to go back to his room.

Tsuna rolled over to his back and turned his head to stare out the window. There were raindrops on the glass, and thunder boomed. Tsuna mildly wondered how Yamamoto and Lambo were. Yamamoto was probably having fun with baseball, and Lambo was probably getting in to trouble. And Reborn was probably beating Lambo to a pulp. And then serving him up to his mother and telling her to make hamburgers.

While Tsuna mildly toyed with the idea, there was a knock on his door. He struggled up, wincing at the stinging pain of his bruises. "Come in… I mean, _entrare_," he corrected himself quickly. Aoi had threated to bash his head in if he didn't speak Italian more. "'This is Italy,'" she had said to him. "'Not Japan. Now speak Italian. Or else.'"

Aoi was very persuasive.

However, it wasn't Aoi who opened the door.

"Oh! Oregano-san!" Tsuna expressed in surprise as the pretty woman smiled kindly at him.

"Hello, Decimo-sama," she said with a smile. "I just came to make sure you were all right. There was quite a racket in the training center."

"Ah, it's alright," he smiled reassuringly. "I'm alright. I just need to sleep… and maybe… one of those massage pads," he laughed sheepishly, rubbing his sore shoulders. Oregano made as if to help, but Tsuna quickly crawled backwards on the bed. "I'm alright! You don't need to," he laughed awkwardly.

Oregano blinked, and then giggled. "You're too shy, Decimo-sama. You should be more bold. Especially towards women, who you will one day need to court."

"C-Court?!" squeaked Tsuna, looking terrified. "As in… flirt with?"

"Hmm, I suppose that's what I mean," Oregano gave a funny little half-smile. "You'll have to learn how to charm women eventually, Decimo-sama. Even more so, you'll need a wife to produce an heir."

"A-An heir?!" Tsuna squeaked, blushing at the thought. "I-I…"

"It's all right, you're still young," Oregano comforted him. "I just hope that Nono-sama will choose a decent lady to be your wife!"

"Yes…" Tsuna muttered, still thinking about heirs. Then what Oregano had just said hit him. "W-Wait! Choose?"

"Yes, Decimo-sama," Oregano looked surprised. "Vongola Nono-sama and the Vongola Elders will be the ones to choose who your bride will be. Of course, she must be a strong woman, and – "

"Wait! Oregano-san!" Tsuna looked positively alarmed. "Don't I get to choose my own bride?"

Oregano fixed him with a puzzled stare. "I'm afraid not," she said gently. "The women who you know of are not exactly 'mafia' material. Only those deemed worthy are allowed to marry and continue the Vongola Famiglia."

Tsuna felt like he was suffocating. "I-I can't choose at all?" he asked in a small voice.

"No…"

Silence dropped like a stone, before Oregano hurriedly excused herself and exited quickly from the room, avoiding Tsuna's half-dead stare of disbelief. Slowly, he rolled over and buried his face in his pillows.

He couldn't choose the girl he wanted to marry? He thought wistfully of Kyoko-chan, with her bright, beautiful smile, a girl he could never marry. And then he thought of Haru, with her silliness and little quirks; she would be heartbroken if she realized her dream of marrying Tsuna couldn't come true. Then he thought of Giotto and Ginerva. The two weren't in love, but they were fond of each other, certaintly.

It was days like these where Tsuna wished that he could be an ordinary boy, who could just run away and have nothing to do with the mafia ever again.

But it seems that he wouldn't have a choice.

It wasn't until one in the morning when Tsuna remembered the possible sequel to Giotto's diary. The rain had let up, and the clouds had cleared, showing the moon. _It'll be fine_, Tsuna thought, rebelliously. _I can take care of myself._

He grabbed his raincoat – an orange one with the numbers 27 in white on the front – and a flashlight from the desk drawer. After consideration, he perched a baseball cap on his spiky hair, one which Yamamoto had given him for his fifteenth birthday. Yamamoto had made sure to put the Namimori Middle School logo (which Tsuna didn't even know the school had) to make sure that Hibari wouldn't see the hat as something against the dress code. After which, Tsuna wore the hat almost everyday to school, much to Gokudera's (well hid) annoyance.

Tsuna slowly opened his door, thankful that it was well oiled, and quietly stepped down the hall. He went cautiously. Pausing at every noise, which, to him, sounded like one of Reborn's gunshots. The shadows looked as if they were monsters, ready to devour him whole. Everytime a cloud passed by the moon, he would flinch, convinced that the silhouette was a person coming to stop him. Then he would wait even longer until the cloud had passed and the passageway was once more bathed in moonlight.

Luckily, because of the moonlight, Tsuna didn't have to use the flashlight. He stuffed it in his pocket.

After agonizing minutes of creeping through the hallways and down the stairs, Tsuna stood at the backdoor of the Castle, which led to the gardens. Tsuna had only been out to the gardens a few times, usually with Aoi, for poison training. The Vongola gardeners grew a wide varaiety of poisons, for… reasons…

Tsuna trekked through the gardens and eventually ended up at the edge of the forest. He gulped. The trees in the forest grew close together, barely letting light through. Tsuna took his flashlight out of his pocket and switched it on. The thin beam did little to calm Tsuna's nerves. He felt like he was in a badly written horror novel, with something ready to pop out at him at any moment.

He took out a piece of chalk that he had found in the garden and marked a tree. (1) _That why I'll know my way back_, he thought.

And so Tsuna valiantly braved the woods and managed to find the cabin in only 10 minutes… is what he would like to tell you, but the truth was that Tsuna dropped his flashlight somewhere, completely panicked, and then ran in a random direction towards the light, which turned out to be an open area with the cabin in it, the moonlight illuminating the old wood. There was an oddly romantic air around it.

Tsuna gulped and slowly approached the cabin, gingerly touching the tarnished doorknob. Slowly, slowly, he swung open the door, wincing at the loud squeaking sound the hinges made. His eyes were closed; he opened them.

The inside of the cabin was clearly neglected, but Tsuna could see that it was once well-furnished. Faded red couches were along the right wall, and a dusty bed with a brass frame stood in the corner. Bookshelves (Tsuna's heart leapt) were on the left side of the cabin. He eagerly strode towards them, glad that the moon was shining again through the windows. The titles of the books were clear; most of which were Italian. Tsuna frowned and scanned the titles more carefully. He pulled out the odd books, ones with no titles. After riffling through these, he struck gold after the first six books. This book was plain and black. Not even the word _Diary _on the cover. And when Tsuna opened the book, the pages were stained, damp with age and weather. The text was barely legible.

He moved towards the window and read by moonlight. His eyes lit upon the first entry.

**_June 1st. Ginerva says that she's hoping the baby can be a summer baby. I disagree. She's only been pregnant for about five months, so the baby should be born sometime in the month of September. Barely missing summer. Ginerva pouted for a while, but she got over it._**

**_Ginerva's memories seem to have no intention of coming back. And what's worse, I heard news of a body found in Lake Garda. The descriptions of the corpse sound forbiddingly familiar to Ginerva's lover. I'm going to send people to discover the details. I pray for the truth to not be what I fear._**

Tsuna felt an odd sense of chills go down his spine.

**_June 2nd. Ginerva's lover has died. I am going to the funeral._**

The bad feeling increased and smacked Tsuna hard in the gut. Ginerva's boyfriend had committed suicide after not being able to be with his beloved. For a moment, he thought of Haru and what she would think if Tsuna had choice but to marry someone else, then vehemently shook his head. _Haru is a strong girl_, he reasoned, trying to convince himself. _She wouldn't die over someone as pitiful as me._

Yet that horrible feeling remained…

**_August 18th. It has been a month and a half. Today I deemed it acceptable to finally shed my mourning clothes. You may laugh at me, but I still feel like this was all my fault. _**

**_I didn't tell Ginerva. Rather, it seemed more merciful for her memories to have departed rather than to reawake her to a world of misery. I remember when Ginerva still had her memories, she would talk often about her lover. They had promised each other to marry when they were very young, barely older than ten. That was how much they loved each other. And I know that if Ginerva's memories come back and she discovers her loved one to be gone, she will most probably take the same route as her deceased lover. I don't want more people to die._**

**_And now, my mind wanders back to my old love, whose laugh I still remember. If I had a person like her right now, who I can truly love for the rest of eternity, then I want her to soothe me with tender words, tell me that I was not in the wrong, embrace me tightly, and even in my moments of when I am tiresome and frustrating, and never, ever let me go._**

Tsuna sighed quietly as he shut the book. He couldn't read anymore right now. The pain that Giotto had gone through had been real… but Tsuna was unable to wrap his head around it. How could such suffering exist?

When Tsuna thought he was feeling a little stronger, he opened the book again, but as his eyes dropped to the next entry, the light suddenly went out.

No, more accurately, the moonlight was suddenly covered by storm clouds. It began to rain heavily, and lightning flashed. Tsuna gave a squeal of fright and attempted to jump up, only suceeding on tripping and smacking his forehead on the ground. He laid there, dizzy and rather confused. The blow to the head had disoriented him.

Thunder boomed. Tsuna gave a small whimper before slowly climbing to his feet and staggering towards the door. Halfway there, the door was violently thrown open by a gust of equally violent wind. Tsuna's hands automatically flew up to cover his face from precipitation and wet leaves that blew in. He shivered. Tsuna's clothes were soaked. He fell backwards on to his rear.

_Wh-What do I do now?!_

"Hey, you idiot! Why the fucking hell did you run off here?!"

_Gokudera-kun?!_

_… No, wait, Gokudera-kun doesn't talk like that to me…_

Tsuna peered through the cracks of his fingers and gave a start. "Aoi-san!"

Aoi was looking throughly peeved, wearing a black poncho with a hood, carrying a waterproof flashlight.. "You twit! I went to check your room and you weren't there! You're lucky that I found you out here. C'mon, let's go."

"**_If I had a person like her right now, who I can truly love for the rest of eternity…"_**

Tsuna felt an unexplained relief flood through his body. Aoi frowned at his unresponsiveness and walked over, kneeling before him. She spoke in a gentler tone. "Come on. Let's go before you catch a cold."

"… **_then I want her to soothe me with tender words…"_**

"I know that curiousity is a strange thing, but you could have told me you wanted to come here. We could've gone together."

**_"… tell me that I was not in the wrong…"_**

Words flooded through Tsuna's brain as he slowly picked himself up… and then hurled himself in to Aoi's arms. Unseen by him, her eyes widened with shock…

**_"… embrace me tightly…"_**

Aoi gave a small sigh and wrapped her arms around Tsuna's body. "Were you scared?" she asked gently. "It's okay you know. But seriously, don't do this to me again. I can't have a heart attack at this age."

With her arms still around him, Aoi supported Tsuna through the door, out in to the wet and windy forest, and all the way back to Vongola Castle, where she helped him change (embarassment be damned), and then stayed next to him while he fell asleep, stroking his forehead soothingly. Eventually, she also fell asleep, cuddling Tsuna like an enormous teddy bear.

**_"… and never, ever let me go."_**

* * *

(1) People crush chalk to sprinkle on gardens. Chalk provides nutrients for the soil and keeps away pestilence. Try it out, gardeners!

Yeah, so the romance is officially beginning. I'll work hard! Though it will be a little difficult...

**Next Chapter**: Tsuna is sick, but he finally reads the end of what happens to Vongola Primo. Why did Giotto suddenly move to Japan? And who was Tsuna's great-great-great-grandmother?


	25. A Short Intermission Due to Sickness

Hello~! I know, I know, I wrote that little blurb at the end of the last chapter about what would be posted next.

Well, I lied. Sorry.

To be more gentle, I thought that if I didn't type this one first, then I would be going out of order in my own head. You've all had times like this. Don't lie.

This chapter is also kind of short, and mixed up. This was so much clearer in my head, but as you know it's really hard to put it down in print. Words words _words_ all circle in the brain, and you need to pluck out the ones that fit best. And you have to try to not repeat too much of the same word in the same word or paragraph, or else the whole thing sounds so strange.

There will be a vote at the end of the chapter. Please vote~!

**Title:** _Memories Never Fade__  
_**Chapter: **_A Short Intermission (Due to Sickness)  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Action/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH!!! That's too many!!! And there will be more!!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_I'm thinking seven now..._  
**The Most Main Characters:**_Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _After the little adventure in the woods, Ran comes down with a fever. Tsuna attempts to comfort her, but he feels hurt. And it seems that Hibari has someone special...?_

* * *

Ran sneezed.

She sniffled and scowled. Ever since she had 'rescued' that… that… _brat_, she had gotten a slight cold. And from the other edge of the table, the little brat kept giving her sideways glances. What was his problem?

"Aoi-san?" Tsuna ventured timidly. "Are you feeling alright?"

"No," was Ran's snappish answer. Tsuna flinched and retreated back in to his chair. "Now are you done those problems or not?"

"Y-Yes! I mean no!" Tsuna quickly sat up and started riffling feverishly through the advanced geometry problems that Ran had given him. "Erm, to find the surface area of a cube with a hemisphere covering the top base, you need to…"

He lisped in to incoherent muttering. Ran leaned back in her chair and stared at the ceiling.

They were in the library, for Tsuna to work on his academics. When he had learned enough Italian, he would go to a school in Italy, and Ran would be able to go home to Japan. She missed the warm weather.

"It's so damn cold," she muttered, shivering as she rubbed her arms. Tsuna cast her another concerned glance, but her hard glare (which she had taught to her Hibari) made him drop his gaze.

"Aoi-san," came a voice. It was Oregano, holding a stack of documents. "Would you mind looking over these? They dictate the boundaries between the Gesso and the Vongola…"

Ran stood to take the documents… and stumbled. Ran never stumbled. She hadn't for years, anyway.

"Aoi-san?" Oregano rushed forwards to catch her, and ended up spilling some of the papers on the ground.

"I'm alright," Ran panted slightly. She was clinging to a bookcase for support. Her cheeks were flushed, and her forehead was sweaty. She reached out to take the remaining papers from Oregano's hand…

And then the world spun. She grabbed at empty air, missing the documents and instead collapsed to the ground. Her hair stuck to her face and made it difficult to breathe. Instead of being cold, everything became burning hot. Ran groaned. "Ow…"

"Aoi-san!" she watched from slitted eyelids as Tsuna shot up from the table and hurried to her side. "Aoi-san, please hold on!"

"Stupid… idiot…" she muttered. Her vision wavered again and instead of Tsuna's childish face, she saw her old love, Vongola Primo. "Gi… o… tto…" she raised her hand to brush his bangs away. "Don't look so worried… for a person like me…"

Her hand fell, and the shadows took her away.

* * *

When Aoi awoke, the first thing she felt was a cold pack on her head. Grumbling, she grabbed it from her head and flung it across the room.

The second thing she felt was silk covers and new clothes. Someone had carried her to bed and changed her.

The third thing she felt was a hand wrapped tightly around her own. The owner of the hand was probably asleep, judging how limp the arm moved along with her hand when she tried to shake it off.

She turned her head. Tsuna. He was indeed asleep next to her, hand clamped over her own. "Tight grip," she muttered.

She sat up, and then flopped back tiredly on the pillows. Her head was hurting too much. Her throat felt dry, and the pitcher was all the way at the other side of the room. Ran sighed. There was really no choice, was there?

"You. Tsu-chan. Wake up," she flicked Tsuna's forehead. He stirred, albeit reluctantly.

"Nnnn," Tsuna sleepily rose his head. "Five more min – AGGGH!!! Aoi-san!!" he leapt backwards and banged his head in the wall. "Owww…"

Ran stared at him for a bit, before letting out a weird noise. "Pft…"

"Eh?" Tsuna blinked as he rubbed his head. Ran's lips were clamped together, but tears were coming to her eyes.

"Y-You…" Ran gave him a brilliant smile before surrendering to laughter. "You're too much!"

Tsuna blushed. "It's not funny!" he said indignantly.

"Is too!" Ran kept laughing until she started coughing.

"Are you okay?!" Tsuna panicked.

"I'm coughing, not dying. Get me a cup of water, will you?"

Tsuna quickly grabbed the pitcher and poured a cup, slopping most of the water on the dresser. Ran stifled another giggle.

"Thanks," she said, as she took the cup and sipped delicately. She noticed Tsuna staring at her, an odd expression on his face. "What's up?"

"Eh!? Oh! Nothing, I was just thinking…"

"Yes?"

"Aoi-san is very pretty when she smiles!" he blurted. He realized what he said and quickly clamped a hand over his mouth, blushing so hard that his face turned an odd shade of red violet.

Ran blinked and then a small, flirty smile slowly spreading on her face. "You think that I'm pretty?" she teased. She reached out and gently brushed Tsuna's face. He jumped and let out a squeak.

"You're so shy," she murmured. "Just like my Kyou-chan."

Something stabbed Tsuna in the heart. "Um, what kind of relationship do you have with Hibari-san?"

"Hmmm?" Ran straightened slightly. "Our relationship… huh…" her eyes got a faraway look that Tsuna had seen before. "We're a little… odd, I guess you can say. We were close, but we always fought. And he always tried to 'bite me to death'," she chuckled. "Well, I always beat him down though."

"You did?"

"I did. He's not that tough, or rough. He's actually really sweet when he wants to be," Ran's eyes turned adoring. "He _always_ cooked for my birthday. And he's really good at cooking. His food is delicious. And once when I went to the store to buy food and it suddenly rained, he came with an umbrella. First time he _ever_ shared anything, I'm sure…"

She lapsed in to silence. Tsuna watched her as she stared off in to the distance, remembering memories that made her smile so brilliantly. He felt a stab in his heart.

"Um… I think I'll leave now…" he said weakly.

Aoi spared him a glance. "Oh. Okay," she said vaguely. "If I'm still sick tomorrow, you'll have the day off. Be a good kid."

She went back to her fantasies without a second thought. Tsuna blinked and quietly exited.

_My chest hurts, _he thought. He clutched his shirt, the area above his heart. _I wonder why?_

* * *

It was four o' clock in the morning when Hibari's cell phone vibrated, the lit screen showing a text message. Hibari rubbed his eyes and stared grumpily at the phone, toying with the idea of smashing it to pieces for disturbing his sleep. Then when he saw who it was, he reluctantly opened the phone and read the message.

**Hi Kyou-chan!** read the text. **I'm actually gotten sick. You were right about Sawada Tsunayoshi; he's more trouble than he's worth.**

**Has anything interesting happened in Japan? Have you finally met all of Shirou's siblings ;p? Haha, he's really got a lot huh? Good thing that most of them are adopted, or I'd be really worried about his parents' sex lives.**

**… Whoops, I suppose I shouldn't mention the parents, should I?**

**Well, I hope that you're still healthy. Drink more milk by the way, because your short-temper is probably because of your lack of calcium.**

**Love you! Have a good day~!**

Hibari grumbled quietly to himself. Amaya always had to have the last word.

Beside him, his companion murmured in her sleep before tiredly raising her head. "What time is it…?"

"It's four a.m. Go back to sleep," he snapped his cell phone shut.

"Mmkay," she said drowsily before turning her back to him and falling asleep. Hibari quietly laid himself down next to her and reached out. He brushed over the fabric of her nightgown, up to where her hair was, and up to the thing that annoyed him the most.

Pulling out the clip quietly, he sighed to himself with satisfaction as he felt her hair fall from the pineapple style to a normal hair style. He placed the clip beside him on the bed side table and nestled close to his bed mate. After a brief while of contemplation, he wrapped his arm around her torso and pulled her against him. She whimpered a little in her sleep before relaxing again to normal breathing.

Smirking to himself silently, he laid down so that they were sharing a pillow.

_Sometimes, it's not too bad to get close_, he thought to himself, remembering that he and Amaya used to share a bed when he was younger.

Rearranging himself comfortably, he allowed his guard to be let down and his eyes to drift close. Out on the balcony, Hibird let out a soft chirp as he pulled the cotton in his nest around himself and went back to sleep.

* * *

So I'm going to need a vote.

1) Continue with the Decimo Mini Diary Arc and write what happens to Giotto and how he went to Japan.

2) Head back to Namimori and see what Hibari's been up to after Ran left.

I go either way (on this vote) so I don't care which you prefer. I've been dying to go back to Hibari (I've added so many more OCs that it's not funnny), but I also really want to finish this arc and explain my theory of how Giotto was forced to go to Japan. Of course, knowing Amano, my whole thing is waaaaaaaaaaaay off.

Seriously though, I'm sort of angry because I'm a stickler for accuracy (on most things). And now that Enma and the Shimon Family have entered the picture, my whole story makes no sense.

Then again, it's times like these where I am incredibly grateful for the parallel worlds that Amano has set up. She knows what her fans want, for the most part.

Please vote!! I'll be checking the results in a week! (and until then, I can't write anything... Arrrgh)

Now excuse me, as I have another multi-chapter fic that I will be working on. And on that, I need a second vote.

1) Go with the anime arcs.

2) Go with the manga arcs.

Simply put, it's a poll of manga vs. anime. I have a little more time to go before I get there, so please vote! For both!


	26. Meanwhile In Namimori

Well, if you've read the comments. You can see that our Skylark has won by a landslide. And so, let's see what's been going on. Hence the title. For all you 1896 (That's Hibari and Chrome by the way, not Hibari and Mukuro) lovers, here comes an overly big dose!

Oh, right, and a whole bunch of new OCs are coming out. Most of them can be considered Hibari's 'friends' but that's only because he's met them through Shirou. And ALL of them have their own little abilities. Typical bunch of OCs, yes?

By the way, for the latest manga chapter, I say that the one attacking the Vongola Famiglia (the one with the new flame) is Suzuki Adheleid. Just a guess, but that's what I think.

**Title:** _Memories Never Fade__  
_**Chapter: **_Meanwhile In Namimori...  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Action/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH! That's too many! And there will be more!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_I'm thinking seven now..._  
**The Most Main Characters:**_Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _By sheer chance, Hibari meets Chrome at an intersection. Even Chrome does not know how cruel a Skylark can be..._

* * *

The day was bright, with a pure blue sky. Chrome hurried back from the convinience store, a bag of chocolate snacks in her hand. Ken and Chikusa had allowed her out, only if she came back in under ten minutes. She waited impatiently at a stoplight, biting her lips nervously. "Ken and Chikusa will be angry," she murmured.

A hand, strong and masculine, was suddenly resting on her shoulder. Chrome gave a little gasp and attempted to break away, but the hand tightened, clenching to the fabric of her school uniform. Only when Chrome stopped struggling did the hand loosen slightly, but it was still _there_. She turned to see who it was, and received a shock.

"Cloud Man…?"

Hibari Kyouya's eyes bored in to her's. "I've been looking for you," he said in his deep, smooth baritone. Chrome trembled slightly; not because that she was afraid, but the power of that _voice_… so strong, confident and unhesitant. Different from her own soft, meek tone. She willed herself to straighten and meet his silver-blue eyes without flinching.

"And what do you want?"

Actually, Hibari wasn't quite sure of why he had stopped her. Maybe it was just the hair, or maybe it was just the emptiness (he _wasn't _lonely. Hibari Kyouya, Chairman of the Namimori Middle Disciplinary Committee did not get lonely) that Amaya had left. People surged around them in a wide arc, avoiding Hibari's deadly aura and smouldering gaze. However, Hibari's eyes were only on Chrome, slowly traveling upwards to her hair, where the spiky topknot was.

"… I want to see Rokudo Mukuro," Hibari coolly announced. "We still have a score to settle."

"Mukuro-sama isn't here," Chrome met his burning stare. "And I will not allow you to see him if you're being this rude. Your intentions are obvious. I won't let you fight Mukuro-sama."

"Did I sound like I was asking for your permission?" Hibari practically sneered derisively. "I don't need anyone's permission. And I follow my own rules."

"It's _my_ body, and so you will follow my rules," Chrome said, a little more sharply. Hibari's eyes glimmered with old interest. At least this girl had a bit of backbone, compared to some useless students in Namimori Middle. "I won't permit Mukuro-sama to come out, and I will certaintly not permit you to see him. Please leave me alone."

Hibari watched her thoughtfully, before releasing her. "Very well. My apologies. Let me walk you home."

Chrome blinked at the bluntness. "Eh…?" she didn't expect him to make it up to her. But maybe he was also just being apologetic… "O-Okay…"

* * *

Chrome kept her eye on Hibari's back, watching him warily. Hibari had not spoken since they had begun to walk together, towards Kokuyo Health Land. He was straight and tall, and walked with the dignity and arrogance of a man who owned the town… which he pretty much did. He took long strides with his slender but strong legs. Chrome had to make several, stumbling steps at a time to keep up.

It wasn't a strange thing to admire Cloud Man for his strength (or beauty, for that matter). Though Chrome wouldn't dare to say it out loud, Hibari very much reminded her of Mukuro. Both were warriors. And were always looking for a good fight; though Hibari took it to a different extreme. And both had the same sense of pride; if you lost, you were a nobody.

The thought made Chrome suddenly want to giggle, though she mananged to keep it in.

At the gates of Kokuyo Land, Hibari stopped quite suddenly, and Chrome quickly braked to keep from running in to him. Luckily, her balance was definitely better than Tsuna's and she kept upright. Chrome gave Hibari a polite bow. "Thank you very much, Cloud Man."

She turned to go, when Hibari's iron grip was once more on her shoulder. "Wait."

_Something is wrong_, the was the first thing that flashed through Chrome's mind. True enough, the moment she turned, Hibari's face was decorated with a smirk. "Fight me. Now."

"What?" Chrome gasped and tried to take a step back. She wondered what would happen if she screamed. Would someone come help her?

"I walked you home. Therefore, you owe me a favor. And I request that you fight me," Hibari said shortly, as if Chrome was a simpleton.

Chrome futilely squirmed in his grip. "B-But… wasn't this to apologize?" she asked weakly. She heard a faint calling in the back of her mind and instantly shut it down. Mukuro-sama, no…

"I had already apologized, _before_ I offered to take you home," Hibari smoothly answered, like the overly smug bastard he was. Chrome racked her brains and realized with sinking feelings that it was true.

Hibari turned Chrome around and steered her by the shoulders in to the park. They stopped at a hole, which, though neither of them knew, Yamamoto Takeshi had battled Ken in, almost two and a half years ago.

Hibari peered down the hole and smirked yet again. "Perfect."

Without another word, he shoved Chrome in.

Chrome let out a frightened squeak as she scrabbled to grasp the edge, but Hibari cruelly stepped on her fingers, forcing her to let go and drop, down, down, down…

She hit the ground with a muffled thump and a soft moan of pain. Chrome blearily sat up. Her right shoulder, the one she landed on, felt funny. There was another muffled thump, and Hibari was beside her. He landed neatly on his feet, like a cat. Chrome saw a silver gleam; his tonfa.

"Down here, you can't run like the frightened herbivore you are," Hibari said. His triumphant eyes gave Chrome shivers. "You're trapped. And now you must fight," he was in front of her, and a stinging blow on her cheek sent her flying backwards, "for your life."

Chrome cradled her cheek, feeling the teeth behind it with her tongue. One of them felt crooked. Chrome stood, slowly, and her trident materialized in to her hands. Hibari didn't smile, but he gave her an approving upturn of the lips. "Better."

Chrome charged him and gave a shallow thrust with her trident. Hibari parried it easily with one tonfa and swung with the other. Chrome quickly ducked and attempted to kick at the crook of Hibari's knee, but Hibari didn't flinch, even after the sharp toe of her boot dug in to his skin. Instead, he exchanged the blow by slamming the heads of both tonfa on to the unprotected back of her head.

Chrome's face hit the dirt, and she lay quite still for a moment. Hibari harshly grinded his heel in to the back of her head. "Get up, herbivore. Even _you_ can't be that weak."

Suddenly the body beneath him was only air, and Chrome was standing a good ten feet away from him, unharmed except for the slight swelling of her cheek. "I am not weak."

Hibari smirked at her. "Wao. I'll bite you to death."

Again, they clashed together, metal upon metal. Chrome felt a searing pain along her abodomen. One of Hibari's spikes had pierced the skin of her hip. Hibari felt something warm run down his cheek. Chrome had managed to slash him with her trident. However, Hibari had already come under Mukuro's 'contract', so it didn't bother him as much as it should have.

When they pulled apart, Hibari's cheek was bleeding profusely; it was deeper than he thought. Chrome was using her trident as support, balancing on one knee. The pain in her hip was agony. She bit her bottom lip to prevent tears from welling up. Hibari was watching her with an amused face. "Not bad," he lazily wiped the blood away and lapped at it with his tongue. "But you're still an herbivore."

Chrome's eye flashed. She charged again, this time feinting to the right and then jumping in for an overhead strike. Hibari, however, anticipated her movements and batted the trident away as easily as a cat would bat a particularly irksome fly. It left Chrome wide open, and Hibari used the opportunity to hit her on her bad shoulder. Chrome gasped with the pain. There was a sound. Not a crack, but more of a … 'pop'.

She couldn't help it but to give a slight wail of suffering. Her arm had been forced out of the socket. Hibari's eyes were now impassive. "Pathetic," she heard him mutter lowly, sounding almost disappointed. "Why Rokudo Mukuro chose such an herbivore to be his so called 'vessel'…"

Anger surged through Chrome and she attempted a charge yet again. This time, Hibari had to only tilt his head, and the trident barely missed his ear. His eyes turned from expressionless to interested, yet again.

It eventually turned pitch black. Night had fallen. Hibari was unconciously reminded of Amaya, while he quietly flitted around his prey, using the shadows to cover him. Only a thin beam of moonlight shone in from above. Chrome was standing in the light, squinting for a trace of the elusive Cloud. She had already learned from the first two hours that illusions did not work on Hibari Kyouya; his mentality had strengthened, and he no longer believed in what she conjured up. Although that one image of Namimori Middle burning to the ground had gained her a split-second advantage.

And of course, Hibari's rage had flared and now the poor girl was covered with even more bruises, abrasions, cuts and other wounds. Chrome had been forcing her shoulder to work, and Hibari was also reminded of the time he fought Rokudo Mukuro, how he had been pressed to fight, despite the many broken bones and the odd pierced lung. However, he didn't not feel even a stab of pity for the girl in front of him; Hibari was simply getting vengence. If he beat up this girl enough, Hibari had reasoned, then that 'kufufuing' bastard was sure to come out sometime. Though admittedly, Chrome was more stubborn than he first thought. She refused to yield to him. Again, he felt a slight pang for Amaya.

He crept silently up behind her, then struck her hard. Chrome crumpled. Her breathing started to become shallow.

"It seems that Rokudo Mukuro does not care for you," Hibari said dismissively, to hide his frustration. "He won't come out to protect his useless little pet."

"You're wrong," Chrome gasped out from the ground. Her hair was filthy and matted. "Mukuro-sama wants to come out. But I won't let him. And I won't let you hurt him."

"Isn't that only because it would be your body getting hurt?"

"No. It doesn't matter what happens to me," Chrome attempted to stand up. "But through others, Mukuro-sama can still be hurt. And I refuse to let that happen."

"Hmm," Hibari's eyes were cold. "I don't care. If that's the case, I'll just bite you to death so badly that he can't use your body anymore."

Chrome, who finally managed to stand, was immediately thrown backwards, with Hibari's hand at her throat. It slowly squeezed and cut off her air. The area around her eyes turned black.

"Mukuro… sama," Chrome gasped out. She slumped quietly, unconcious and oblivious to the world.

* * *

Chrome opened her eyes and saw the stars.

_Am I dead?_ was her first thought. She shifted her hands propped herself up on her good shoulder. A jolt of pain ran through her other shoulder. She lifted it and stared in surprise. It had been shoved back in to the socket. Roughly, but Chrome could move it without too much stress.

She sat up. The hole in the ground was next to her. How did she get out?

She looked down and saw a familiar black jacket covering her midsection. The armband had been taken with the owner, but it was definitely Cloud Man's jacket. A small note was pinned to the sturdy fabric.

**You aren't worth biting to death in that state. Hurry up and get a better diet, herbivore. You're a lot lighter than you're supposed to be.**

Chrome blushed and crumpled the note in her hand. It wasn't her fault that she was thin! Money was limited, and cheap snacks were all that she could buy. But she didn't expect Cloud Man to know that…

She scooped up the jacket and halfheartedly beat off the dust. She had no washing machine, and wasn't sure if the jacket was dry clean only. Chrome gave a little exasperated sigh.

There were shouts behind her. "HEY! STUPID GIRL! WHERE DID YOU GO-PYON?"

"Ken, she's not going to answer if you scream like that."

"Shut the hell up Kakepii! She was supposed to have gotten back hours ago! Dammit, if the Vongola did something again, I'll – "

"Ken. Chikusa," Chrome murmured quietly and hurried to the location where the voices were coming from, forgetting the forlorn bag holding chocolate snacks behind her.

But she didn't forget the jacket.

* * *

"Kusakabe Tetsuya. I need a new blazer… Mmm, exactly like the old one… Are you questioning me? Good, I thought not. Have it ready by tomorrow, or I'll bite you to death."

Hibari shut the phone and gave a little chirrup sound to Hibird, who obidiently flew to his shoulder. With a quiet sigh, he walked back towards the Namimori Shrine, where he now resided.*

"Chrome Dokuro," he muttered. "No. Dokuro Kuromu."**

There was something disturbingly familiar about Chrome. Something that stirred deep in to the depths of his memory, during his childhood, during a happy but unhappy time. The blue hair, the wide sapphire eyes. Something had stopped Hibari from killing Chrome on the spot, but he wasn't sure what.

"Nagi," he muttered. The word sprang unbidden from his lips. "Who was Nagi?"

Hibari didn't like things he didn't understand. And so he promptly forced the manner out of his mind by talking to Hibird under his breath.

"I suppose I'll buy you seeds. Unsalted, of course."

Hibird gave a happy chirp and without delay, broke in to a chorus of the Namimori Anthem.

_"Midori tanabiku, Namimori no~! Ryougaku, shogonaku, Namimori~!_"

Hibari gave Hibird a little scratch on the head and walked down the dimly lit streets of his town, beloved of both him, and his deceased mother.

* * *

*For the record, it's been confirmed that Hibari actually lives in the Namimori Shrine, by the new Vongola art book that came out, with a distinct picture of Hibari (the younger) standing in the shrine, looking out towards the garden. And two of his goons are sitting out in the yard, awaiting his orders. I swear, the moment I find that picture again, I'll show it to you all.

** Since Hibari's the stubborn type, it seems to make sense that he would call Chrome more by her Japanese pronounciation, rather than her name by Mukuro.

ARRRRRGH, I FAIL at battle scenes. And I'm pretty sure that the lyrics are wrong. I didn't look at all, I just did them from memory. And my memory sucks (contrast to the title of this damn story).

And for shameless advertisement, please read my newest story, "Katekyo Hitman Reborn: Behind The Set". It's a lot better than it sounds. But this makes me ask, what material should I write with, the manga plot or the anime plot? Please, I REALLY need to know this. I can't continue until then.


	27. Reunions Can Be Painful

So... yeah, I'm back. What can I say? I got lazy.

Well, even more then that, with the **Shimon Famiglia** stepping in and driving me bonkers, I've had to completely revamp what I had in mind before. So all my outlines went in the trash and I started a new one. As well as probably a billion more OCs that I added just for the fun of it.

Also, who heard the new Famiglia song, _**Mirai No Oozora E**_? I can't decide whether it's the best or worst because not only does **HIBARI SING LINES TOGETHER WITH DINO AND THEN MUKURO AND RYOHEI**, but does ANYONE else feel like the quality of the singing dropped since the first _**Yakusoku No Basho De**_? Not that I'm criticizing (too much), but somehow I feel like it's... different.

At any rate, just type in _**Mirai No Oozora E**_ eng sub and you'll get a decent enough video. I think.

That being said, on with the 1896. We should be returning to Italy in about three-four chapters, two if I choose to speed it up. But, well, that depends on the reviews.

**Title:** _Memories Never Fade__  
_**Chapter: **_Reunions Can Be Really Painful  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Action/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), side: FonOC, slight5986, slight80Kyoko, Reborn/Bianchi, 100xOC, OCxOC, GAAAH! That's too many! And there will be more!  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_I'm thinking seven now..._  
**The Most Main Characters:**_Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara_

**Chapter Summary:** _Chrome comes back to return what Hibari left behind... but she meets a person who she never thought she would meet again. Hibari reminisces about 'Nagi'. Fate is slowly turning for these two... _

* * *

"Oiii," came a voice from above. "Kyouya, if you don't wake up soon, I'll kiss you!"

Hibari gave a small grunt and turned over, ignoring one of the only idiots he considered a friend. "Shirou, go home."

"C'mon, get up!" Shirou half jumped on him. The disciplinary committee president gave a small groan as Shirou's leg landed on his old injury that he had gotten in the Cloud Battle. "Do you really want me to kiss you that bad? I'll do it, you know!"

Hibari's knee jerked up and hit Shirou squarely in the stomach. "Go away."

"Oof!" the red-head fell off the bed. "So cruel…"

Hibari merely rolled over again and proceeded to go back to sleep.

Shirou pouted cutely and went to yank open the door. "HEY, CHIHARU!" he yelled, "HELP ME WAKE KYOUYA UP!"

There was a series of thumping noises as someone ran up the stairs. A small girl burst in to the room, with a beautiful little face and warm brown eyes to match her brother's. She clearly shared Shirou's eccentric taste in hair color; it was dyed an extremely bright shade of neon green. She barely came up to Shirou's waist, but she sent him flying with one, hard-shouldered blow.

"GYAAA!" he screamed as he flew through the air, crash-landing on the lump that was Hibari. Agitated, the prefect sat up, the tonfa he usually kept tucked under his pillow in his hands.

"Chiharu!" he death-glared at her. She, however, was completely unfazed and uncaring.

"That got you up," she said, spinning on her heel and heading back out. "Breakfast is almost ready. Hurry up and change!"

She slammed the door shut behind her. Hibari and Shirou looked at each other for a moment before each gave a tired sigh. Hibari's head flopped back on to his pillow.

"Exactly _how_ do you raise your siblings?"

"… Good god, I don't know, I wing it. She's way too calm for a kid of ten…"

* * *

When Hibari was finally awake, changed, and freshened up for the morning, he meandered down the stairwell, rubbing his eyes like a child. Hibird, an early morning sort of bird, zipped around his head and tugged as several strands of the silky black hair. "Hibari, Hibari."

Not in the mood for the bird's short vocabulary, he swatted Hibird away and entered the kitchen. Chiharu was there, looking all the world for a dress-up doll, wearing a white apron twice the size that she needed. She glanced up at him, stirring miso soup in a pot. "Kyouya-niichan, do you want half a fish or a whole fish?"

"… Half," he muttered, sinking in to a chair at the table made of cherry wood. He glared at it as he did every morning, practically seeing sakura growing out of it. Shirou, in café mode, set down a cup of warm green tea for him.

"You're really not a morning person, huh?" Shirou grinned at him. "Good thing it's Sunday. I think most if your irritation comes from lack of sleep."

Hibari merely glared at him before turning away. Chiharu set down plates of fish, umeboshi, eggs, and pickled vegetables. She scooped out a large amount of rice in to a blue bowl and handed it to Hibari. He took it and began to eat.

"Ittekimasu!" Shirou said cheerily, digging in. Chiharu ate with the same amount of gusto. Hibari watched, now slightly amused, as the siblings put their chopsticks to their mouths at exactly the same time. "Kyouya, what are you smirking at?"

"Nothing," Hibari reverted back to his expressionless face and went back to eating. As he plucked several bones out of fish, he remembered last night and frowned. Nagi… Nagi… who was Nagi?

"Shirou," he said it like a statement. Said boy glanced up. "When we were in elementary school, did we have a classmate named Nagi?"

"Nagi?" Shirou slurped down his soup and leaned back in his chair contently. "Hmmm… there was a Kuroko Nagisa-chan. Was that who you meant?

"No," Hibari reached for his green tea. "Nagi was her full name."

"What brought this on?" Chiharu polished off her rice. Her brown eyes were even more inquisitive than normal. "Did you have a little reunion?"

Shirou snorted quietly. "Poor girl must have had nightmares last night."

"Shut up," Hibari jabbed viciously at his eggs. "I did meet someone and she seemed familiar. That's all."

"What was her full name then?" Shirou relented.

"Dokuro Kuromu."

"Huh?"

"But it felt like her name was Nagi."

"Did you know her?"

"Never talked to her."

"Back up," Shirou held up a hand, head bent over in a 'what the hell, let me process this' pose. "Okay. You met a girl named Dokuro Kuromu, who you think is named Nagi, a girl who you never talked to, and yet when you actually see her face to face, you think that she resembles someone from your childhood?"

"Sounds like a stupid soap opera," remarked Chiharu.

Quickly deflecting the spoon that Hibari threw at his sister, Shirou frowned. "Nagi… Nagi… you know, it DOES sound familiar. I think that Amaya-nee mentioned it to me once."

"She did?" Hibari's interest quirked. As far as he remembered, he never bothered mentioning any of the herbivores (or bothered remembering) in his elementary class. The only one who he did remember was Shirou, and for good reason.

Chiharu rubbed at her mouth vigorously with a napkin. "So? What did Amaya-neechan say?"

Shirou rubbed his chin, frowning. "I'm pretty sure that she said something about a girl named Nagi…"

"She said _what_?" both Hibari and Chiharu said, impatiently and simultaneously.

"She said…" Shirou paused, then his eyes got wide and he turned his head so fast towards Hibari that his neck cracked.

Hibari blinked. "What?"

"Um… she said…" Shirou stared at Hibari for a while before a small grin blossomed over his face. "I forgot~"

"WHAT?" screeched Chiharu. Hibari merely blinked.

"Sorry~"

"YOU LIAR!" Chiharu blew up at him. She seized him by the throat and began to strangle him. "THAT LOOK ON YOUR FACE SAYS OTHERWISE!"

"GYAAAK! Kyouya! Help me!"

"You brought that upon yourself."

"Wha – You're angry at me too, aren't you?" Shirou managed to bear-hug his sister and prevent her from moving. "It can't be helped. What I don't know, I wouldn't remember!"

"Your left eye is twitching, you know," Hibari interjected.

Shirou's right eye twitched. _Right eye for guilt, left eye for lies_, Hibari thought amusedly. Shirou sighed loudly. "But even so, Kyouya, I don't know. Okay?" he got up and cleared the table, dropping Chiharu in the Cloud's lap as he did so.

She glared viciously at her brother and clung to the prefect like a teddy bear. Hibari sighed quietly. It was times like this that Chiharu reminded him of Kiki. Because of Amaya addling Hibari's brain, he could remember names, but no faces. All he remembered was that Kiki was one of the only people who had the ability to make him happy. And Chiharu had the odd quality of making him feel more amiable. As did that little Chinese girl who hung around Sawada Tsunayoshi and his little crowd of herbivores…

Chiharu squirmed in Hibari's lap, and he held her down more firmly. The feisty and violent little girl longed to shake her brother by the throat to force him to give up what he knew. "Enough, Chiharu. I'll get it out of him later. Now stop moving, it's annoying."

Chiharu immediately stopped and curled up like a kitty. She listened to Hibari _only_… her devotion to him stemmed from his usual gentleness towards her. She could tell that she was the only one to receive such decent affection from the otherwise cold prefect. The result was complete adoration.

Hibari sighed quietly, leaning back in his chair to stare at the wood ceiling. _Where have I seen her before?_ he wondered. He was sure that they had met, somewhere. Somewhere…

_**A blooming red flower, the house slowly burned to the ground**_…

Hibari jolted and nearly dislodged Chiharu from his lap. "Ouch! Kyouya-niichan? What's wrong?"

"… Nothing," Hibari sank back in to the chair. He had dozed off. Chiharu gazed up at him inquisitively. "I don't want to talk about it."

Chiharu pouted and slid off of Hibari's lap. "I'll go clean the house," she announced in that little girl way and went off towards the living room. "This place is so old! So much dust everywhere!"

_But it's home_, Hibari thought absentmindedly. _The only place I consider a home_.

He had come to the live in the shrine to be close to his parent's graves. He knew they were fake; he knew that there was nothing left of his parents to bury. But he couldn't shake off an old lingering to the small gravesite in the back, and later discovered that there was a whole hidden sub-chamber in the Namimori Shrine, which he instantly took to because of the traditional Japanese style.

Hibari tilted back in his chair a little to stare at the ceiling. _Nagi…_

_**"What is your name?"**_

_** "Skylark."**_

Hibari jolted slightly and almost tilted backwards. Because he was Hibari Kyouya, however, he shifted his weight forwards and rebalanced the chair. _I dozed off a little again…_

The tired brunette stood and stared at the window, out in to the vast blue sky dotted with soft white clouds.

_Where did that memory come from? _

_ Who was that voice?_

Hibari scowled and turned away, shutting the curtains as he did.

_Amaya._

_ Amaya knows everything._

Reaching for his cellphone, he dialed the number of the person he wasn't sure was his greatest companion, or worst enemy.

* * *

At that moment, Ran was again tutoring Tsuna with Italian. He hadn't improved all too much, but he was concentrating hard on the words that she had given him to study, eyebrows furrowed and lips in a slight pout. The girl could almost see the smoke coming out from his ears.

At the moment her cellphone rang, Tsuna gave a huge jump of fright and a loud squeal of "HIIIII!" Ran ignored him and picked up her cell. Glancing casually at the number, her heart gave an enormous leap of joy. "Kyou-chan!"

"Eh?" Tsuna looked up. "Hibari-san?"

"Get back to work, you," she lightly slapped him on the head and turned to go out in the hallway. Tsuna grumbled a little and grudgingly obeyed her instructions.

"Kyou-chan!" Ran giggled, her delight clearly showing. "You almost never call me! What's up?"

"Who is Nagi?"

Ran almost dropped the phone.

"Eh? Ehh?" Ran faked innocence. "What are you saying, Kyou-chan~?"

"Don't give me that," Hibari said sharply. "You heard me the first time, Amaya. Who is 'Nagi'?"

"… Where did you hear that name?"

"I didn't hear it anywhere, I remembered it," Hibari returned stiffly. "If I remembered it, then it's probably somewhere in the memories that you strongly sealed off, instead of the ones concerning my family."

_Their names and personalities, anyway, _Ran thought with a sigh. "If you can't fully remember them, then that means that I kept them blocked on purpose," she replied. "There's no need to remember them anymore."

"Do not lie to me!" Hibari snapped with intensity that even surprised himself. "I know that you never do things without your own selfish reason. If it does not benefit you, then you do not even bother…!"

Momentarily surprised, Ran pulled the phone away from her ear and stared at it. _What the hell? Even though I don't reveal too much of my true personality to people…_ she exhaled and smiled softly. _He can still see right through me?_

Ran put the phone back to her ear and said in a cheerful, ringing tone, "Aw, don't think so much in to it, Kyou-chan~! Besides, most of this is for your own good too~!"

"Amaya – "

"I'm hanging up."

"Wai – "

She snapped her phone shut and chuckled quietly. "He didn't believe me…" she tapped the phone to her chin. "But…"

_I understand how you feel. However, for you to forever dwell on the faces of loved ones lost will be painful…_

Her father's image flashed before her eyes. The old-yet-not woman could still remember the days where she proudly called herself Izaya Ran, happy, always, to be in her father's family.

Then an image of Giotto rose to her mind and she blushed like a shy (if slightly disappointed) schoolgirl and hid her face in her hands.

_… The faces of first loves…_

_ Are also very, very painful.

* * *

_

Hibari growled in frustration and flung his cellphone away. It clattered somewhere on the floor but did not break. The disgruntled brunette stalked back up to his room and collapsed on his bed. _Why won't she tell me anything?_ He rolled over and buried his face in the sheets. _She used to tell me everything…_

The door opened. "Kyouya?" came Shirou's voice. "You, um, left your cellphone in the hallway. Do you want it back…?"

"No. Go away," Hibari responded, his voice muffled.

"… Kyouya? Something wrong?" Shirou asked, concerned. Hibari wasn't acting like his usual overconfident (read: snarky) self.

"Shut up! Nothing. Go away."

_Uwaaah, he's visibly moping, something must be wrong…_

Shirou gave a small, impatient huff and immediately dived on top of his best friend.

"Ugh!" Hibari squirmed. "… You're heavy! Get off!"

"No way," Shirou said firmly, managing to trap the slightly smaller boy under him. "Not until you tell me what's wrong."

"Nothing is wrong," Hibari protested, wriggling around to get free. It was only Shirou's years of experience of dealing with the brunette that he could gamely hold on. "Hurry up and let go."

"Kyouya, when you act like this, something is always wrong," the redhead paused. "Now that I think about it, don't you only sulk like this when Amaya-nee has done something?"

The prefect stiffened.

_Bullseye_.

"Eh? Eh? Kyouya? Tell me!" Shirou exclaimed, now very much excited. "Is it love trouble? Heey~"

"… Why do you automatically connect 'love trouble' and Amaya together?"

"Huh? It isn't?"

"Shirou-niichan, Kyouya-niichan," Chiharu poked her head through the door. "Do either of you want some apples…" she froze and stared at the image of Shirou pinning Kyouya to the bed. "NOOOO! Shirou-niichan, you beast!" Chiharu grabbed one of Hibari's spare tonfa (yes, he has spares) and continuously whacked her brother on the head with it. "Get off! Off! Monster! I KNEW you were like that!"

"What the hell did you think I was doing and what do you _mean_ that you knew I'm like _what_?" screeched Shirou, tumbling off the bed for the second time that day. "Kyouya! Talk to her!"

Hibari looked at Shirou and then looked at Chiharu. "Keep going. Considering what he was trying to do to me, he deserves worse than that."

Chiharu's face turned scarlet and began to flog her brother without mercy. "Stupid nii-chan! Stupid! Stupid!"

"KYOUYA, YOU TRAITOR!"

Hibari sighed irritably. While it was fun to watch the computer whiz get the crap kicked out of him by his own little sister, they were noisy and he was starting to get a headache. What he really wanted was some quiet time and maybe a stretch of the legs. And so he grabbed his new blazer (armband included), took his best pair of tonfa, whistled to Hibird, and left his home, with Shirou's pleas of help ignored and unnoticed.

* * *

Crowds (how he hated them) parted as he walked through, like Moses and the Red Sea. He glared a little, bit a couple to death, and once again confiscated various items from students of Namimori Middle. Gokudera Hayato hiding underneath the park bushes, attempting to smoke a cigarette out of sight from his overprotective sister, was not safe from the Skylark's pitiless ways of punishment.

It was only when he came to a crossroad that he paused in mild surprise. Standing there was Chrome Dokuro, with what he recognized as his old blazer tucked securely in her arms. Hibari slid behind a nearby telephone pole and observed her. No, he was not hiding, he was merely scrutinizing the female, much like a carnivore studying their prey before pouncing.

(Nor was it stalking. Preying was also not stalking.)

Chrome was wandering around listlessly, back and forth. She had a pitiful look on her face that vaguely reminded Hibari of a misplaced puppy. She squeezed the blazer in her arms tightly, hugging it to her in a method of self-comfort. She meandered around for a little while longer before stopping with a sigh.

"He isn't coming… perhaps I should go to the school?"

_She's looking for me?_ Hibari realized with a frown. _What for?_

His eyes fell to the black blazer in her arms. _Oh._

He tch'd. What an annoying woman.

Meanwhile, Chrome, still blissfully unaware that she was being watched, again began to turn in circles, trying to remember where Namimori Middle School was. "Um… wasn't it this way…" she walked a few, uncertain steps before turning and crashing in to a person. "KYA! I-I'm sorry…"

_Herbivore_, Hibari snorted, turning away to leave. He had no interest in the pathetic excuse for a human being.

"Be more careful!" came a scolding woman's voice. "This dress is a Valetino original, imported from America! If it got dirt on it…"

_Really annoying_, sighed Hibari. This was why he couldn't abide most females, who obsessed themselves with only fashion and appearances.

"I-I'm very sor…" Chrome Dokuro's voice faded away. Hibari glanced behind him to see her staring up at the woman as if she were a ghost.

"What are you looking at?" the woman snapped. She was a blonde in her forties, with a face that would have been beautiful had it not been distorted by unpleasant scowl. "Really, kids these days…"

Her voice also petered out, staring at the now terrified girl at her feet. Chrome gave a little squeak of fear and slowly crawled away backwards, trying to put some distance between them. "I-I'm sorry. I will leave…"

"Wait!" the woman grabbed Chrome by the arm and hauled her up. Chrome winced; the woman's nails were digging harshly in to her skin. The woman did not lessen her grip. She grabbed Chrome's chin and examined her thoroughly. "That eye and hair-color… No, it couldn't be."

"Ma'am…"

"I'm sure you died. Why are you even alive?"

"I-I should be going…"

"Answer me!" the woman slapped Chrome hard in the face and sent back to the ground. "You died! I have the money from your insurance! Why are you here? Answer me! Nagi!"

Hibari's ears perked. _Nagi?_ he peered around the telephone pole. So her name really was Nagi?

"I-I am not 'Nagi'!" Chrome gulped and tried to steel herself. "I am Chrome Dokuro."

"Ha! Not likely! What's with that strange name?" the woman snapped back with such venom that Chrome shifted back a step. "You were always like that. Dreaming foolish little fantasies that were impossible from the start! That's why you were such a worthless child. You never did anything because of those stupid dreams!" the woman stepped forward, advancing slowly on her estranged daughter. "Why are you even here in this town anyway?"

"What about you?" whispered Chrome. The violet-haired girl looked as if she wanted to cry. "Why are you in Namimori, Mother?"

"Don't call me mother!" snapped the woman. "The only reason I came to this hick town is because Yutaka-san needed to do something here. Nothing more, nothing less!"

"Yutaka-san…?" Chrome swallowed. She remembered Yutaka. Her stepfather that had acted as if she were a piece of furniture. Neither of them had cared about Nagi. Neither of them…!

"That's right. He's in the middle of a business transaction," the woman's face suddenly glowed. "If he succeeds, then we'll be even richer than were before…! Not that it matters to you," she sniffed and waved a disdainful hand. "But really, the air here is horrible. And there's nothing interesting to do, so I was just walking around. Really, the people here have no manners either."

"T-that's not…" Chrome quailed a little under her mother's glare, but she didn't falter. "That's not true! There are many wonderful people in this town that I know!" Images floated to her head, of Tsuna, Kyoko, Haru, and all of the Guardians. Chrome hugged the blazer tighter to herself. "Many people…"

"Hmph. Whatever. At any rate I… what's that?"

"Eh?"

Chrome flinched as her mother suddenly grabbed her hand. "Where did you get this ring?" she examined it. "What an odd design. Is it an antique?"

"Y-Yes… it is also a one of a kind," which was the truth in a way…

"Oh? And where is it from?"

"I-Italy…"

"Italy?" the woman's head shot up, her eyes glinted. "This ring is from Italy?"

"Yes, Bos – my friend gave it to me. Please let go," she gently shook her hand to emphasize her point.

"This is wasted on a girl like you who doesn't care about fashion. Give it to me."

"What?" Chrome was shocked at her mother's blunt request. "I-I can't! This is very important to me!" Chrome struggled to break free from her mother's strong grip, fisting her hand to make it harder to remove the ring.

"By the sound of if, your friend is loaded enough to afford something like this for a thing like you," snapped her mother, now attempting to pry the fist open. "He can get you another. Give it to me!"

"No!"

"Give it – "

"That's enough."

Chrome was yanked back by a hand on her shoulder. Her mother, furious, opened her mouth to tell whoever interfered that it was none of his business… but then recoiled under Hibari Kyouya's fierce stare. Chrome gaped at her savior. "Cloud Man…"

"You," Hibari addressed the blonde woman, "are being an irritating herbivore. I request that you leave before I punish you in the name of Namimori Middle School's Disciplinary Committee."

"A what?" Chrome's mother regained a bit of her former bravado and tossed her long hair. "Excuse me, but this is a matter between a mother and her daughter. Outsiders shouldn't interfere."

"You are not her mother."

"Hm?"

"You abandoned her, gave her up for dead, and seceded her from the family. Therefore, you are no longer her mother," Hibari stated with crisp efficiency. Chrome was still staring open-mouthed at Hibari, bewildered that he had come to her rescue. However, her mother was still staring at Hibari's face, unsure whether to deny or argue. Being the callous (and very, very stupid) woman she was, she chose the latter.

"What would you know about our family?" she snapped, crossing her arms in an immature gesture. "Are you two even friends?" she paused and spotted the Cloud Ring on Hibari's hand. "Oh? Matching? Are you two a couple?"

"No," Hibari immediately replied, a little irked. "We barely know each other."

"Then why bother defending her? Mind your own business!"

"… There's one thing I do know about families," Hibari said calmly, eyes cold and analytical. "Mothers don't throw away their children."

_Cloud Man…_

"Tch!" the woman turned around and stalked off. "Whatever. Hopefully, I won't see you around anymore, Nagi," she called back as a parting shot. "It'd be better if you never existed!"

Chrome's eye watered. Hibari gave a snort. "Unsightly woman."

Chrome sniffled and wiped away a lone tear. "Thank you, Cloud Man," she said softly. Hibari glanced at her and turned away derisively.

"I didn't do it for you," he informed her. "I only did it because that woman was insulting Namimori. That's all," he paused. "And even though I don't like seeing you in my territory, I'll make an exception since you defended Namimori."

_Defended…?_ Chrome paused and thought briefly about the conversation that she had had with her mother. _Oh, he means that time…_

"It's true though," Chrome smiled. "I… know many wonderful people here. Boss, Kyoko-chan, Haru-chan…" she turned her smile at him, "and you too, Cloud Man."

Hibari resisted the urge to roll his eyes with difficulty. He turned to leave. "Herbivore. Praising others will get you nowhere. Hurry up and go back to Kokuyo."

"Ah, wait!" Chrome jogged to keep up with his long strides. "U-Um, I was looking for you…"

"For me?" Hibari paused, pretending to be surprised (disguising the fact that he had been STALKIN - er, watching her).

"Yes…" Chrome clutched the blazer in her arms one last time before holding it out. "I-I cleaned your jacket for you. So I should return it…"

"…" Hibari stared at her. "… If you haven't noticed, I'm wearing one that is exactly the same. I don't need it anymore."

Chrome blinked and her gaze dropped to Hibari's shoulders and back. "Oh… Oh!" Chrome blushed, hard. "I-I'm sorry, I really didn't notice."

"Herbivore," Hibari sighed and turned around again to walk away.

"Eh? Wait! What do I do with this then?"

"Keep it," Hibari said without stopping or looking back. "Your uniform is too thin anyway. It'll be troublesome if you become sick on Namimori grounds."

Chrome blushed even more, but obligingly pulled the blazer on and hugged herself. It was too large for her but she didn't really mind. "Thank you, Cloud Man," she murmured. She didn't know if she heard or not, but he had.

"Whatever."

Chrome watched him walk away for a little while longer before snapping out of her trance. "I should go home…" she turned around. Then she turned around again, then again.

_How odd… _she thought with a frown. _It's the first time that I really don't want to go back.

* * *

_

"I'm home."

"Kyouya, you bastard!" Shirou exploded. He was holding out his arm for Chiharu to bandage. "You left me there! I almost died!"

"You're not dead so stop complaining."

"I wouldn't be able to complain if I died!"

"Hn. Shame that you didn't then."

"Kyouya!"

"Chiharu, once he's taken care of you can go home," Hibari yawned behind an elegant hand and turned to go upstairs.

"Okay, I'll take care of him. Well."

"DON'T MAKE IT SOUND LIKE YOU'RE GOING TO KILL ME!"

Hibari sighed and once again collapsed on his bed. _For some reason, I feel exhausted…_ he shook off the herbivorous feelings and sat up. _I've probably just gotten a cold again. Even carnivores feel sickness._

"Hey, Kyouya!" Shirou banged open the door and gave a glare worthy of Xanxus. "You jerk! Apologize!"

Hibari gazed at Shirou's body, taking in the immense amount of bandages that enclosed him from top to bottom. "… Did you die and go to Egypt while I was gone?"

"What the hell is with that lame joke?" Shirou snapped, sitting down and ripping away several of the bandages. "Chiharu just went overboard with them, that's all," he kept tearing at the bandages until the only ones left were the ones on his head, right arm, and rib cage. "Damn. She really got me good. I think a couple of my ribs may be out of place."

"Shall I snap them back in for you?" Hibari got out his tonfa.

"GYAK! Stay away! Stay away!" Shirou threw up his arms as if to ward off a blow (which, when you think about it, was not really far off). Then he paused and peeked through the gap of his fingers. "Hm? Kyouya?"

"What?"

"Did something good happen?"

"Why?"

"Hm, I don't know…" Shirou tilted his head slightly. "Maybe it's just because I've known you for so long, but… to me it looks like you've got this funny little half-smile at the corner of your mouth."

Hibari instinctively reached up to touch his mouth and traced it. "… I'm smiling?"

"Geez! Are you blind to everyone's feelings, including your own?" Shirou snorted. "Well, whatever. From past experiences, I know that you probably won't tell me anything."

_… That didn't stop you from asking me weird questions this morning…_

"At any rate, you were gone for pretty long," Shirou stood up and stretched his legs, then winced as the bones gave some uncomfortable cracks. "Jesus. That hurt. What were you doing?"

"Patrolling," was Hibari's automatic answer.

"Oh. Well that's like you," Shirou left. "We'll be making lunch soon," he called behind. "No steak this time though."

"Mm," Hibari answered, a little annoyed. Chiharu and Shirou always spoiled him on the weekends. He didn't like it. Didn't they see that he could take care of himself? But they seemed happy enough to do it and Hibari wasn't prideful enough to pass up leisure time.

(He never admitted that it was _only_ for Chiharu and Shirou that he willingly allowed to spoil him. Kusakabe Tetsuya and the rest of the Disciplinary Committee were doing it of their own volition, and Hibari just ignored them most of the time.)

Hibird chirped from somewhere outside. The prefect opened the window and allowed for the tiny ball of fluff to come inside. Hibird did two loops and four corkscrew spins before settling in Hibari's soft black hair with a satisfied chirp.

"Showoff," muttered Hibari, not without a fond (for him) look on his face. Hibird chirped again, this time singing a different tune from usual. "Nagi! Nagi!"

"Hn?" Hibari stopped and remembered. … _That girl's name was Nagi…_

But he still didn't understand. If her name was Nagi, then why did everyone (meaning Rokudo Mukuro and Sawada Tsunayoshi and the rest of his little herbivore gang) call her Chrome Dokuro? The more he thought about it, the more it didn't make sense, and the more it didn't make sense, the more his frustration grew. Hibari was _extremely_ prideful, and he didn't like things that he didn't know about.

_This is annoying,_ he thought. He laid back down on his bed, one arm covering his eyes from the insistent sun (reminding him of someone he'd rather not think about). He pondered a little more on the subject of Nagi/Chrome, and a wicked smirk bloomed on the uncovered part of his face.

_If you want to know something…_

_ Why not ask the subject?_

He sat up and contemplated. He was going to go pay a visit. Unsavory and bothersome task it was, but he would do it. To clear his irritation and boredom, Hibari was the type who would do almost _anything_.

* * *

I've been contemplating about putting character profiles up about my OCs, but I think I'll wait until the story digs a little deeper. There are still a hell lot of OCs that need to be introduced.

That being said, please review~


	28. Remember Me?

Yeah, this is... short.

There has been a couple changes in pairings (not the main ones), but luckily none of those character's love lives have come in yet, so I _can_ revamp. Whoo!

And for the people who keep asking... YES THIS IS AN 1827, I JUST HAVEN'T GOTTEN THERE YET. PATIENCE IS KEY!

And another thing, the reason Hibari and Tsuna are the character listings for the story is because they're the two who appear the most, not just the actual pairing!

**Title:** _Memories Never Fade__  
_**Chapter: **_Reunions Can Be Really Painful  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Action/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), 80Haru, 59OC, 69OC, OCOC, 00Kyoko, LamboI-Pin, ColoLal, etc. etc...  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_Too many to count_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara (and several other OCs, maybe)_

**Chapter Summary:** _Hibari visits Chrome at her home, but it becomes a bit complicated... "Cloud Man... are you... hitting on me?" If he were not Hibari Kyouya, he would've banged his head in to the wall._

* * *

"Chrome," Chikusa and Ken were both staring at her, hostile frowns on their faces, "why are you wearing that jacket?"

"Doesn't that belong to the duck-pyon?" Ken sniffed at the blazer and scowled. "It smells just like him!"

Chrome flushed and clutched at the black fabric. "Isn't it okay?" she asked timidly. "It's only his blazer. And he gave it to me."

"It might have a tracking device-pyon!"

"Ken, you're being stupid again. He already knows where we live."

"What was that, Kaki-pi?"

Chrome sighed and retreated back to the sorry place that she called her room. It was small; only 7 by 6 feet. Inside she had crammed a small bed, a tiny bookshelf, and a chair next to the grimy window. The ground was covered by sharp stones and glass, but Chrome always wore her boots except to bed so it was alright. She also had a small bedside table which was topped by precious few photographs. There was one with the sunny smiles of Kyoko, Haru, Lambo, and I-Pin, as well as her own face smiling shyly at the camera. Another photo had Tsuna, Gokudera, Ryohei, and Yamamoto, and yet another with the Kokuyo gang. If she squinted, then in the very back behind her, she could see Mukuro's shadow.

_I don't have one of Cloud Man…_ she thought, stroking the Kokuyo picture with her fingertip. _I wonder if he'll let me take one?_

She sighed. No, right?

Chrome stood to look out her window. Despite the horrible condition of her room. Not that there was much to view; it overlooked the back of Kokuyo Land, which was now only a dirt heap. The sun was shining brightly against the window, almost blinding her. She stepped back and retreated to her bed. The bed wasn't that great either. It creaked and groaned at every movement, and the sheets on it were ridiculously thin, almost thing enough to easily tear. Her pillow was little better than a brick.

But this was the only place where Ken and Chikusa would stay, and so she would also stay. She sighed again. Seeing her mother had reminded her of the time when she was Nagi. Though she would rather die than return to those days, she did wish that she could have a more decent bathroom…

Then… there was a very soft _chink_ sound, then another. Chrome's eye widened and she quickly scanned the room. Was there someone with her? No… she was alone. Mice?

Another _chink_ sound, this one louder and coming from somewhere behind her. She looked around again and – just barely – a tiny movement caught her eye.

She stared hard at the window. This time, she caught sight of the rock being thrown at her window. This one, however, made a _clank_ sound; it seemed that this rock had been bigger than the others. Whoever was throwing them must have been getting impatient.

She crossed over to the window and peered out and downwards. What she saw surprised her. Standing there was Hibari Kyouya, looking very, very annoyed.

She opened the window and stuck her head out. "Cloud Man?"

"About time," Hibari huffed, glaring up at her. Chrome flinched. "Female herbivore. Let me up."

"Umm, okay," Chrome stood away from the window and created the illusion of a rope. Unseen by her, Hibari scowled. Illusions irritated him to no end. However, he compliantly grabbed the rope and hauled himself up. He landed himself neatly on the windowsill and glared some more at Chrome. Chrome was arbitrarily reminded of the story Rapunzel… only this prince looked like he wanted to bite her to death.

"Dokuro Kuromu," the prefect began, eyes narrowing, slowly moving towards her. Chrome retreated until her back hit the door. She vaguely wondered if she could run. Hibari didn't notice (or maybe he just ignored) her uneasiness. He leaned in close to her, and then frowned. "Have we met somewhere before?"

_Eh?_

Chrome stared at him, confused and astonished. Cloud Man couldn't be… could he?

"Your face looks familiar," Hibari crossed his arms. "That is the only reason I refrained from killing you two days ago. Have we met when we were children?"

_Could it be?_

"Cloud Man… are you…"

Hibari arched a fine eyebrow. Did she know after all?

"Are you… hitting on me?"

_Maybe not._ If he wasn't Hibari Kyouya, he would have banged his head against the wall. This scrawny little female herbivore who could barely talk to him, let alone _look_ at him, thought that he was… _courting _her? He snarled. "Do you have a death wish?"

"Eh?" Chrome pushed the tips of her pointer fingers together in a nervous motion. "But… I heard a lot of those types of lines before…"

That peaked Hibari's interest. "Directed at _you_?" he questioned, wondering what stupid herbivore could possibly find appealing in this weak, diminutive creature.

Chrome flushed. "Mm… once in a while."

Hibari snorted disbelievingly. Chrome saw the humor in the situation and giggled. The air between them didn't feel too bad. It was more like Hibari just paid a casual, although impromptu, visit. Speaking of which…

"Cloud Man, may I come to your house?"

"What?" Hibari quirked an eyebrow, both surprised and perplexed. "What for?"

"You have visited my house, and now I want to visit your house. It's only fair."

Hibari considered the bold proposition briefly before sighing. "I suppose. Unlike most herbivores, you are decent-mannered. Very well."

Chrome smiled secretly in triumph. In truth, she had always wondered where Cloud Man lived. Did he actually live in the school?

"But if you touch anything, I'll bite you to death," Hibari added, noting that her face was too happy. However, her smile didn't disappear.

"I understand," she giggled. "Cloud Man, where do you live?"

"… Namimori Shrine."

"Eh? A shrine? As in that huge place at the top of the steps?"

"… Do you not know what a shrine is?"

Chrome tilted her head. "Well, I do, but I never expected that place to be inhabited by humans…?"

Hibari rolled his eyes and turned to leave. "Whatever, stupid herbivore. If you're going to come, come during the evening. I have school during the day."

Chrome nodded her head agreeably. "Okay, Cloud Man."

Hibari paused briefly at the windowsill and took a last look at her before jumping out. Chrome tilted her head in confusion. Something in Cloud Man's eyes looked a bit… off.

_It looked as if… he was trying to see someone that wasn't there…_

She walked over the window and peered out. Too late; he was already gone.

_But I don't think it was Mukuro-sama…_

She sighed. Hibari Kyouya was an enigma that she could not begin to comprehend.

* * *

At the entrance of Kokuyo Land, Hibari paused yet again to glance back at the run down building. "Tch," he muttered unhappily.

_She is both familiar and unfamiliar. I do not understand why._

_ … I hate things I do not understand._

He gave a soft growl of frustration and strode down the street to his beloved Namimori.

_I even told her where I lived…_

He stopped walking, smashed the nearby wall surrounding Kokuyo Land, and then continued on like nothing happened.

_ … What's wrong with me?_

* * *

Again, this is really, really short. But I'm a bit in a roadblock here. I think I'll seriously have to start rewriting some parts of the plot. |T_T|


	29. Isn't This Too Sudden?

LOL, I'm back for another chapter. Though a lot shorter than I want. Does anyone have **advice** about how to use more figurative language? Because that's my worst point.

Another thing. I was watching a compilation of Hibari's 'kamikorosu's on Youtube, then I saw that as a teenager (supposedly) his voice was a lot more mellow, then deeper as an adult. But Kondo Takashi-san, for whatever reason, keeps the adult voice when the younger Hibari comes back. _**WHY?**_ Somehow it bugs me!

**Title:** _Memories Never Fade__  
_**Chapter: **Isn't This Too Sudden?_  
_**Rating:** _T, WILL be moved up to M_  
**Genres:**_Friendship/Romance/Crime/General/Hurt/Comfort/Humor/Family/Drama/Supernatural/Action/Sci-fi/Mystery(?)/Angst/Tragedy_ (I've said this before and I'll say it again, they have got to put up more than just two slots for this!)  
**Pairings:**_Main: 1827, 27OC, onesided 6927, 18OC, 1896 (a lot of it XD), 80Haru, 59OC, 69OC, OCOC, 00Kyoko, LamboI-Pin, ColoLal, etc. etc...  
_**Total Number of Permanent OCs: **_Too many to count_  
**The Most Main Characters:**_Sawada Tsunayoshi, Hibari Kyouya, Chrome Dokuro, Rokudo Mukuro, and my OC, Izawa Ran/Tsurara (and several other OCs, maybe)_

**Chapter Summary:** _Now it's Chrome's turn to visit Hibari, but, well, how did it get to here already?_

* * *

Chrome took two deep breaths, one to steady herself, another to steady her mind. She wasn't a stranger to Namimori, and she had been to the Namimori Shrine before with Kyoko and Haru during New Year's, but she couldn't help but feel apprehensive. This was Cloud Man's house… a _boy's_ house… she was fine with Ken and Chikusa, but Hibari was a completely different matter. Something about him made her feel weak in the knees. It was ridiculous. They barely talked in the two years they had been acquainted; him because he could have cared less, her because she knew he disliked her.

But… the past three days had been filled with a sudden whirlwind that threw her ordinary routines and feelings in to chaos. First there was the sudden meeting, then defending her from her wicked mother… even climbing through her bedroom window to see her! It all felt like a shoujo manga. Chrome blushed a little at the thought and clutched the black blazer around her shoulders; now she didn't dare go anywhere without it, for fear of Ken and Chikusa disposing it if left at home.

_Maybe I should just go back… he didn't actually invite me…_

"Are you going to stand there all day? Move. You're in the way."

Chrome gave a terrified squeak and whirled around again. "C-Cloud Man…"

Hibari gave her a look with what seemed to be incredulity. "What are you doing?"

Chrome blushed. "I… I…" she stammered.

"… Whatever. Follow me."

Chrome shyly followed Hibari in to the shrine, unsure of how to act. Hibari did not use the front entrance to the shrine. In fact, he hadn't entered the shrine at all. Instead he circled around to the back and walked up on a stone path that lead somewhere in to the Namimori forest. Along the way, Chrome noticed two piles of rocks that looked oddly like graves.

_I wonder what those are for…_

Hibari's bird, Hibird, flew around their heads and chirped "Hibari, Hibari," at random intervals. Chrome allowed the yellow feather ball to nestle in her hair. Hibari glanced back, in slight surprise, and turned away again with his usual poker face.

"It's odd," he commented lightly. "He never lands on anybody but me."

_… Is he jealous?_ Chrome wondered and then lightly smiled. _How cute…_

"Have you named him?"

"The baby calls him 'Hibird'," Hibari replied. I merely call him 'little one' or 'you'."

"Hibird…" Chrome reached up to touch Hibird's feathers. "So your name is Hibird?"

"Hibari! Hibari!" Hibird chirped.

Chrome couldn't help but giggle. "That's Cloud Man's name, not yours!"

"Hibari! I'll bite you to death!"

"…" Hibari stopped and turned to glare at the little canary. "You have nerve saying that."

Chrome laughed brightly at that; she couldn't help it. Hibari gave her a glare as well before turning around to continue walking.

"We've arrived," Hibari announced a little while later, stopping in front of what was the most enormous house that Chrome had seen in her lifetime; and she came from a rich family. The house was similar to the shrine, being traditionally Japanese and mostly made out of wood.

"The living room is this way," he motioned towards the door on the right. "Go in. I'll come back later."

Chrome nodded and went through the sliding door. She looked around in surprise. She wasn't exactly expecting anything in particular but even so the room astonished her.

The room was crossed with Western style and Japanese style. Black leather couches, similar to the ones in the Reception Room, faced each other at the center of the room. Between them was a low, polished maple table with floor cushions surrounding it. The traditional Japanese paintings and calligraphy on the wall looked handmade. Neatly arranged flowers in delicate earthenware pottery sat on the table, the floor, and in front of the doors. A scroll reading _Namimori_ was hanging in the center of the far wall.

Hibari came back in to the room with tea set on a tray. He set it down on the low table and elegantly poured out steaming green tea in to the cups. Chrome blinked in surprise.

"I… I didn't expect you to give me tea."

"Unlike most brutish herbivores I have manners and am capable of hospitality," was his blunt answer as he handed her a cup. "Drink."

She shyly sipped her tea and her eyes wandered over the flowers and the calligraphy. "Did you also do those, Cloud Man?"

"I did."

Silence reigned for a moment before Chrome tried again. "Do you enjoy it?"

Hibari paused and considered the question. "I don't hate it."

"Why?"

"You're noisy."

Chrome sighed. It had been her idea to come over in the first place and now she felt like a fish out of water. She wasn't sure what to do anymore. It didn't help that Hibari could hold a conversation as well as Chikusa; that is to say, not at all. She sipped at her tea slowly and tried to think of conversation starters. It turned out that she didn't have to bother; Hibari began instead.

"Why do you serve that small herbivore?"

"Eh?" Chrome's one eye blinked. "You mean… Boss?"

"Sawada Tsunayoshi," Hibari frowned, "is very strange. He is sometimes strong, sometimes weak. But either way he is still an herbivore."

Chrome gazed at him. "Cloud Man, do you dislike Boss?"

"I don't understand him."

"But do you dislike him?"

Hibari tilted his head in contemplation before deciding on an answer. "No, I do not."

Chrome was more surprised by this answer. "You don't?"

"I did, initially," Hibari took a calming sip of tea," but things are more interesting with him around, and so I do not dislike him. Besides, if he were not here, the baby would not be here either."

Chrome blinked. "I… see…"

She didn't, really. But then again, Mukuro-sama liked her as a vessel, and so a willing vessel she was. Almost as if he read her thoughts, Hibari spoke up again. "Why do you obey Rokudo Mukuro when he has no interest in you as a person?"

Chrome blinked hard and tried to keep the hurt out of her voice. "You have no interest in the big-haired man as a person and yet he obeys you."

Hibari's eyes sparked with something that could have been amusement. "Kusakabe is different," he had begun to address his supposed right-hand man by last name only, "and I am also different. However, I have noticed that most herbivores dislike being treated as objects. It is not my personal opinion."

"Oh…" Chrome looked down at her hands folded in her lap. "I… I am loyal to Mukuro-sama because he saved me."

"… That is a lie."

"Eh?"

"Why would you be grateful to something so trivial? Saving another person, though I dislike it, is an everyday occurrence with many shapes and forms. Simply 'saving you' is not specific enough for me to understand exactly what transpired between you two."

"E-Eh?"

_This is the first time I've ever heard Cloud Man talk so much…_

"Hurry up and start explaining or I'll bite you to death."

"O-Okay! Well, it started when I wasn't 'Chrome', I was a girl named Nagi…"

_Why is he so interested in learning about Mukuro-sama and I? This isn't a shoujo manga…_

"Go on."

_Oh, I get it…_

"I never liked that life…"

_Cloud Man is human too…_

"My mother never cared and my stepfather cared even less. I didn't have any friends."

_Even to him, silence is sometimes unbearable…_

* * *

A nightingale chirped softly. Chrome gave Hibari a quick bow. "I'm very sorry! My story took much longer than I expected…"

"It's fine. Hurry up and leave or the last train will leave soon," Hibari was leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed. "Move, herbivore."

"Y-Yes!" Chrome took several hurried steps down the stone path towards the shrine stairs, then paused and turned around. "Thank you very much for having me over! A-And listening to me!"

"Just leave."

"Yes!" Chrome set off at a run. Hibari watched her leave, then re-entered his house.

A few minutes later the sound of an engine roaring to life echoed through the still forest.

Chrome gasped for breath, clutching a stitch in her side. She looked desperately around the station, hoping to catch a glimpse somebody. It was impossible; no one was there. "I missed the train," she murmured sadly. She sighed dejectedly and sat down on the ground. "Maybe I should stay here until morning…"

"You'll die of cold if you do that. It would be troublesome if you did so on Namimori grounds," suddenly something was forced on her head; a motorcycle helmet. "Get up and follow me. I'll drive you back."

Chrome looked up in to the grey-blue eyes of Cloud Man and nodded without thinking. "O-Okay," she shyly got up and went after him. A black motorcycle, beautifully sleek, was parked near the entrance of the train station. Hibari easily mounted the vehicle and rolled his eyes as Chrome clumsily clambered up after him. Neither of them spoke. Chrome simply clutched her arms around Hibari's midriff as they drove along the abandoned roads. The helmet was the type that didn't cover her face, only the top and sides of her head. The wind blew dust in to her eye and she took cover by pressing her cheek against Hibari's strong back. Cloud Man, she noted, did not wear a helmet.

"Doesn't dust get in to your eyes?"

"I like the wind."

"Oh," Chrome wondered why he never directly answered her questions. The rumbling of the motor faded as she slowly drifted off to sleep…

* * *

Chrome groggily awoke and stared up at a very familiar ceiling. "Eh? I'm… home?" she sat up and wiped away the sleep from her eye.

"About time-pyon!" Ken suddenly burst in to her room. Chrome gave a small shriek of surprise and instinctively pulled the covers over her chest.

"K-Ken! What are you doing?"

"You finally woke up stupid girl? Keh! I'm surprised you didn't wake up when that ugly duck carried you in to your room-pyon!"

_…. Eh….?_

"Cloud Man… carried me?"

"Like a princess," Chikusa entered, pushing up his glasses. There was a crack in one lens "You were out like a light, Chrome."

_A princess?_ Chrome's entire face went red. She seriously was regretting falling asleep now; how did it feel to be carried in Hibari's thin yet powerful arms? Even though the morning was cold and there was no heat in her room, she swore that she could feel a lingering warmth on her body.

"What else did he do?"

"Hah? He just carried you in here, smacked me across the face, and then broke Kakipii's glasses. But it's okay; everything is peachy keen-pyon… Do you think I'd say that! The next time I see that bastard I'll show _him_ who the real biter is!"

"Ken, that's unsightly."

"Shut the fuck up Kakipii!"

Chrome tuned the quarreling boys and stared out her window, vague memories and sensations of gentle hands, battle-worn skin, and a strong back standing out in her mind…

* * *

"… chuu!"

"Bless you, Kyouya."

"Hn."

* * *

So yeah... I feel like the relationship is moving way too fast, even though I have something else planned for them... I hope that this will work out somehow T_T

And again, GIVE ME ADVICE. I seriously need it.


	30. AUTHOR'S NOTICE

So then... I'm sorry to say it, but this story will be on hiatus for a while longer. If anything, I don't know how long it will be.

I'm working on a separate story _Child of the Earth, Angel of the Sky_, which I would love for you to read in the meantime. Until I can find both motivation and ideas for this story, I'm afraid I cannot continue.

Now, this is not forever. _Memories Never Fade_ is not being discontinued; it is simply hibernating. And with all the new information I'm hearing from the actual KHR series, there's going to be some serious rewriting. The overall plot will not change, but the details might.

I apologize for all fans of this story and promise to rewrite this as soon as possible. Meanwhile, please enjoy _Child of the Earth, Angel of the Sky_.


End file.
